Copyright
©The Author(s) 2020. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatr. May 19, 2020; 10(5): 95-100
Published online May 19, 2020. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v10.i5.95
Published online May 19, 2020. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v10.i5.95
Abdominal pain related to adulterated opium: An emerging issue in drug addicts
Maryam Vahabzadeh, Medical Toxicology Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
Bruno Mégarbane, Department of Medical and Toxicological Critical Care, Lariboisière Hospital, Paris-Diderot University, INSERM UMRS-1144, Paris 75010, France
Author contributions: Vahabzadeh M and Mégarbane B have developed the framework of the paper; Vahabzadeh M wrote the first draft; Vahabzadeh M and Mégarbane B worked in subsequent drafts; all authors confirmed the last version before submission. The authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Authors declare no conflict of interests for this article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Bruno Mégarbane, MD, PhD, Professor, Department of Medical and Toxicological Critical Care, Lariboisière Hospital, Paris-Diderot University, INSERM UMRS-1144, 2 Rue Ambroise Paré, Paris 75010, France. bruno.megarbane@lrb.aphp.fr
Received: December 23, 2019
Peer-review started: December 23, 2019
First decision: February 20, 2020
Revised: April 7, 2020
Accepted: April 23, 2020
Article in press: April 23, 2020
Published online: May 19, 2020
Peer-review started: December 23, 2019
First decision: February 20, 2020
Revised: April 7, 2020
Accepted: April 23, 2020
Article in press: April 23, 2020
Published online: May 19, 2020
Core Tip
Core tip: Lead may contaminate opium, heroin and illicit opiates, as is particularly observed in Iran. Abdominal pain is almost the most frequent symptom bringing the patients to medical care. Psychiatrists and emergency physicians should be aware of this complication and consider lead poisoning in opiate users referred for acute abdominal pain. Specific early management is crucial to improve prognosis.