title: Hepatotoxicity associated to synthetic cannabinoids use.
abstract: Synthetic cannabinoids (SCs) are psychotropic compounds, chemically created in laboratory to mimic cannabinergic brain activity of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol. The consumption of these compounds for recreational purposes can lead to a variety of adverse effects on health including overdose and deaths. Increasingly popular as substances of abuse since the 2000s, SCs were produced initially to bind and study cannabinoid receptors (they also can be called synthetic cannabimimetics) failing in eliminating the psychoactive effects. Currently, SCs are misused by students and young adults as "natural products" because of their herbal aspect. Actually, these apparently innocuous recreational substances hide toxic effects to health. Reported side effects are cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, neurological, renal, metabolic, ophthalmologic, pulmonary and psychoactive including dependence and withdrawal. A few cases of SCs ingestion have also been associated with liver failure. We herein review the recent literature on the SCs toxicity with particular attention to liver damage aspects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicines Evaluation, Drug Abuse and Doping Unit, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy. ilaria.palmi@iss.it.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Solimini
authors.forename: F P
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Busardò
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Rotolo
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ricci
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mastrobattista
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mortali
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Graziano
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pellegrini
authors.forename: N M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: di Luca
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Palmi
mesh_terms: D000700:Analgesics; D002186:Cannabinoids / Q000009:adverse effects*; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury; D062787:Drug Overdose; D006801:Humans; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D000700:Analgesics; D002186:Cannabinoids; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs