Toward a Comparative Overview of Dependence Potential and Acute Toxicity of Psychoactive Substances Used Nonmedically
The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse – January 01, 1993
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
The pharmacology of psychoactive substances reveals dramatically varied safety profiles. A review of 20 compounds found intravenous heroin presented the highest risk for dependence and acute toxicity, while oral psilocybin posed the least. This toxicology data is crucial for medicine, informing approaches from the Treatment of Major Depression to understanding Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects. Such insights illuminate the diverse Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior and emphasize the critical need to assess a substance's full toxicity, beyond just immediate lethality.
Abstract
A procedure is outlined for comparing dependence potential and acute toxicity across a broad range of abused psychoactive substances. Tentative results, based on an extensive literature review of 20 substances, suggested that the margin of safety ("therapeutic index") varied dramatically between substances. Intravenous heroin appeared to have the greatest risk of dependence and acute lethality; oral psilocybin appeared to have the least. Hazards due to behavioral deficits, perceptual distortion, or chronic illness were not factored into the assessments.