Acetylfentanyl (acetyl fentanyl) is an opioidanalgesic drug that is an analog of fentanyl.[4] Studies have estimated acetylfentanyl to be 15 times more potent than morphine,[5][6] which would mean that despite being somewhat weaker than fentanyl, it is nevertheless still several times stronger than pure heroin. It has never been licensed for medical use and instead has only been sold on the illicit drug market. Acetylfentanyl was discovered at the same time as fentanyl itself and had only rarely been encountered on the illicit market in the late 1980s. However, in 2013, Canadian police seized 3 kilograms of acetylfentanyl.[7] As a μ-opioid receptor agonist, acetylfentanyl may serve as a direct substitute for oxycodone, heroin or other opioids. Common side effects of fentanyl analogs are similar to those of fentanyl itself, which include itching, nausea, and potentially fatal respiratory depression. Fentanyl analogs have killed hundreds of people throughout Europe and the former Soviet republics since the most recent resurgence in use began in Estonia in the early 2000s, and novel derivatives continue to appear.[8][9][10]
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^Helander A, Bäckberg M, Beck O (20 April 2016). "Intoxications involving the fentanyl analogs acetylfentanyl, 4-methoxybutyrfentanyl and furanylfentanyl: results from the Swedish STRIDA project". Clinical Toxicology. 54 (4): 324–32. doi:10.3109/15563650.2016.1139715. PMID26850293. S2CID41668288.
^Higashikawa Y, Suzuki S (June 2008). "Studies on 1-(2-phenethyl)-4-(N-propionylanilino)piperidine (fentanyl) and its related compounds. VI. Structure-analgesic activity relationship for fentanyl, methyl-substituted fentanyls and other analogues". Forensic Toxicology. 26 (1): 1–5. doi:10.1007/s11419-007-0039-1. ISSN1860-8965. S2CID22092512.
^Mounteney J, Giraudon I, Denissov G, Griffiths P (July 2015). "Fentanyls: Are we missing the signs? Highly potent and on the rise in Europe". The International Journal on Drug Policy. 26 (7): 626–31. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2015.04.003. PMID25976511.
^Ruangyuttikarn W, Law MY, Rollins DE, Moody DE (May–June 1990). "Detection of fentanyl and its analogs by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay". Journal of Analytical Toxicology. 14 (3): 160–4. doi:10.1093/jat/14.3.160. PMID2374405.