4 Street names for xylazine include “tranq”, “tranq dope” or “sleep cut” in the United States, and “Anestecia de Caballo” in Puerto Rico. Routes of administration include smoking, snorting, swallowing, inhaling, or injecting. Xylazine is also abused independently from other drugs. Xylazine is especially commonly used as an adulterant in a mixture of heroin and cocaine, colloquially known as a “speedball.” Xylazine has been used for multiple illicit purposes: attempted sexual assault, accidental or intentional poisoning, drug abuse. 3ĭrugs such as cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin are often adulterated to increase bulk size or modify effects of other drugs. 2 Some states have begun tightening legislation around the drug New York state Senate passed a bill to designate xylazine as a controlled substance in 2017. 1 However, xylazine is not considered a federally controlled substance, requiring only a veterinarian’s prescription. Due to effects of sedation, bradycardia, and hypotension, it has not been approved by the FDA for human use. The drug comes as a clear liquid solution (20, 100, and 300 mg/mL), In the veterinary setting, it is often administered concomitantly with ketamine or barbiturates. It is increasingly found in illicit drugs of abuse. Xylazine (Rompum, AnaSed, Sedazine) is a sedative with analgesic and muscle relaxant properties approved for use in veterinary medicine only. Edwards School of Medicine – Marshall University Medical Student, Class of 2024

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