Herbal supplement used to treat addiction and pain deemed dangerous by researchers

BINGHAMTON, NY – Herbal kratom is increasingly being used to relieve pain and treat opioid addiction, but is not safe to use as a herbal supplement, according to a new study by Faculty of Binghamton University, State University of New York.

William Eggleston, clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice at the University of Binghamton, had seen more and more patients present with toxicity or stop consuming kratom. Kratom is an herbal supplement derived from a plant that grows throughout Southeast Asia. It is well known that the active chemicals in the plant act on the opioid receptors of the body. Patients report using the supplement to treat / prevent withdrawal, treat a disorder of opioid use or treat pain.

Eggleston was curious to know what types of toxicities were being reported to poison centers nationwide to better determine if kratom was safe enough to be used as a herbal supplement. His team conducted a retrospective analysis of kratom exposures reported to the National Poison Data System to determine the toxicities associated with kratom use. They also reviewed the records of the New York County County Medical Examiner's Office to identify deaths associated with kratom.

A total of 2312 kratom exposures were reported, with 935 cases involving kratom as the only substance. Kratom is most often the cause of agitation (18.6%), tachycardia (16.9%), drowsiness (13.6%), vomiting (11.2%) and confusion (8.1%). Serious effects such as seizures (6.1%), weaning (6.1%), hallucinations (4.8%), respiratory depression (2.8%), coma (2.3%) and cardiac or respiratory arrest (0.6%) were also reported. Kratom was among the causes or contributing factors for the deaths of four deceased persons identified by the County Medical Examiner's Office.

The results suggest that kratom is not reasonably safe and poses a threat to public health because of its availability as an herbal supplement.

"Although it's not as potent as some other prescription opioids, kratom still acts as an opioid in the body," Eggleston said. "In higher doses, it may cause slowed breathing and sedation, which means that patients may develop the same toxicity as another opioid, and may also cause seizures and liver toxicity. Kratom may play a role in the treatment of pain and opioids, but its safety and efficacy require additional research, our results suggest that it should not be available as a herbal supplement. . "

Eggleston and his team are working with colleagues at SUNY Upstate Medical University to better assess the number of patients actually using kratom and whether the risk of toxicity changes with the dose of kratom taken.

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The document "Use and toxicity of kratom in the United States" was published in pharmacotherapy.