Flakka is the latest manifestation of the dangerous class of synthetic drugs commonly referred to as bath salts making its way through Florida and other states where it is also known as gravel.

According to a story reported by the Sun-Sentinel of Fort Lauderdale a man tried to kick in the front door of the local police department while high on flakka because he hallucinated that cars were trying to run him over. In a separate incident a man impaled himself while scaling the fence surrounding a police station after he smoked flakka.

"The main ingredient of flakka is the chemical alpha-PVP, which is a synthetic cathinone," said Lt. Neal Goebel, deputy operations and expert witness, Navy Drug Screening Laboratory Jacksonville (NDSL JAX). "These drugs are derivatives of the amphetamine-like stimulant cathinone from the khat plant whose leaves are chewed socially in the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa for its euphoric effects."

Flakka can be snorted, injected, smoked or swallowed. Often it's also combined with other drugs such as marijuana. Alternatively the drug can be vaporized using an e-cigarette. As reported by the Sun-Sentinel, a man in Palm Beach County climbed onto a roof naked, armed with a gun and began shouting that he was delusional and hallucinating. He later told authorities he had vaped flakka using an e-cigarette.

"Flakka has many of the same, dangerous, side effects as other bath salts such as rapid heart rate, hallucinations, psychosis, paranoia and aggression," said Bob Sroka, chemist, NDSL JAX. "Often the user has a sense of invincibility, which causes them to take dangerous actions that they otherwise would not."

Similar to other designer drugs, such as Ecstasy, individuals can also experience hyperthermia or an increase in the body temperature which, if not treated immediately, can be fatal. Permanent side effects of flakka include breakdown of muscle tissue and kidney failure resulting in a lifetime of dialysis, brain damage, risk of heart attack or stroke.

According to Jim Hall, an epidemiologist at the Center of Applied Research on Substance Use in Health Disparities at Nova Southeastern University in Broward County, Florida, in 2013 there were 126 deaths associated with synthetic cathinones in Florida.

"Like other clandestinely produced designer drugs the users can never be certain of the purity of the product that they are putting into their bodies or the effects that it will have on them," Goebel said. "What's being sold as flakka is usually a combination of alpha-PVP cut with heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine."

"Although we don't test specifically for flakka commands can rest assured that the DoD's Drug Reduction Program has a surveillance initiative to monitor the abuse of these emerging drugs and will seek to add them to the panel if necessary," said Cmdr. Darryl Arfsten, commanding officer, NDSL JAX. "Also, because flakka is usually laced with other drugs readily detected during urinalysis, commands can usually identify individuals that may be abusing flakka."

For more information on the Navy's Drug Screening Program, visit: http://www.med.navy.mil/sites/nmcphc/navy-drug-screening-labs/Pages/default.aspx

For more news from Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center, visit www.navy.mil/.