FENTANYL

Fentanyl [the technical nomeclature is N-(1-phenethyl-4-piperidyl)propionanilide] is a synthetic narcotic analgesic approximately 50 to 100 times as potent as morphine.6 The drug had its origin in Belgium as a synthetic product of Janssen Pharmaceutica.7

In the 1960s in Europe and in the 1970s in the U.S., it was introduced for use as an anesthesia and for the relief of post-operative pain. Almost 70% of all surgical procedures in the U.S. use fentanyl for one of these purposes.

Fentanyl has been called “synthetic heroin”. This is a misnomer. Victims of fentanyl
overdoses were often heroin abusers with “tracks” and the typical paraphenalia. The fentanyls as a class of drugs are highly potent synthetic narcotic analgesics with all the properties of opiates and opinoids.9 However, the fentanyl molecule does not resemble heroin. Fentanyl is strictly a synthetic product while the morphine used in heroin production is derived from the opium poppy.

Beginning in the late 1970s with -methylfentanyl,10 nine homologues and one analogue
(excluding enantiomers) of fentanyl appeared in the illicit marketplace.11 The degrees of potency vary among the fentanyl homologues and analogues. The potencies of the fentanyl derviatives are much higher than those of the parent compound. But the high potencies cited above explain why even dilute exhibits result in the deaths of users who believe they are dealing with heroin. Another name used by addicts when referring to Fentanyl and its derivatives is “China White”. This term was first used to described substances seized and later identified as alpha-methylfentanyl in 1981.

There are many fentanyl homologues and analogues . Because of the size and complexity of fentanyl derivatives, the interpretation of IR, MS, and NMR spectral data prove very valuable in elucidating specific structural information required for the identification of the material.