Kratom-Linked Hepatoxicity on the Rise in the U.S.0

• Kratom News
• November 10, 2019

BOSTON — A small, but growing number of cases of liver injury, related to the herbal product kratom, have been observed over the past 2 years, a researcher said here.

Cases of kratom-associated hepatotoxicity had been sporadic until 2017, when there were three cases alone for a total of seven cases since 2007, as well as four more pending from 2018, reported Victor Navarro, MD, of Albert Einstein Healthcare Network in Philadelphia.

“This is a bellwether,” he said at a press conference at the Liver Meeting, the annual meeting of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. “Not only are we seeing increased use of kratom and adverse events associated with it, but liver injury.”

Kratom is derived from an Asian plant, and the authors noted that product has opioid-like effects — a stimulant at low doses and a sedative hypnotic at high doses.… Continue reading.

Kratom-related liver injuries on the rise in the US0

• Kratom News
• November 10, 2019

BOSTON — The commercially available botanical product kratom, often used for its psychotropic effects, was associated with several cases of liver injury, according to data presented at The Liver Meeting 2019.

“We found that the frequency of kratom use is on the rise in the United States,” Victor J. Navarro, MD, FAASLD, medical director of liver transplantation at the Einstein Healthcare Network in Pennsylvania, said during a press conference. “We first recognized this trend over the past couple of years, but it became evident that the trend was on the rise as more cases of kratom-related adverse events were being reported.”

According to Navarro, kratom is made from Mitragyna speciosa and has stimulant effects at low doses or sedative and narcotic effects at high doses.… Continue reading.

Kratom associated with liver damage0

• Kratom News
• November 8, 2019

The popular herbal supplement kratom may cause liver damage, researchers warn.

Kratom is widely available in smoke shops and online. It’s a botanical product made from Mitragyna speciosa, a tropical evergreen tree found in Southeast Asia. At low doses, it’s a stimulant. At high doses, it has an opioid-like effect.

Use of kratom has risen sharply since the start of the opioid epidemic, and more than 90 deaths have been linked to it, researchers say.

“There are risks associated with using kratom, and liver injury is on the list of things that are a potential consequence of using it,” said William Eggleston, a clinical assistant professor at the Binghamton University-State University of New York’s School of Pharmacy.… Continue reading.

A toxicologist joins us to talk about the dangers of Kratom0

• Kratom News
• November 5, 2019

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