Last week, the medical center had seven spice-related cases over the course of four days. Three of the patients were admitted to intensive care.
As a synthetic drug, spice is often dubbed a secure alternative to marijuana since it doesn’t show up on some drug tests, according to The Clarion-Ledger. It’s typically ingested by smoking and can cause a variety of psychoactive side effects, some of which are similar to what one feels after smoking marijuana.
Alan Jones, MD, chairman of emergency medicine, said the patients who visited UMMC were “agitated and combative,” with symptoms ranging from seizures to unconsciousness to vomiting.
“This is a powerful reminder that spice is dangerous, unregulated and unpredictable,” said Thomas Dobbs, MD, a state epidemiologist. “A single use can kill you, even for those who have smoked spice before. All spice compounds are illegal in Mississippi, and there is no way to predict what you are getting from a dealer.”
This isn’t the first time this year that Mississippi has experienced problems with the drug. The Mississippi Department of Health found that in April and May, the state had 1,204 spice overdose cases. In May, The Clarion-Ledger reported Mississippi had the most spice overdose cases in the nation.
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