Abstract
New/novel psychoactive substances (NPS) are substances of varying chemical structures and, in their physical forms, are taken and ingested and exhibit many diverse drug interactions. They are used in pure form and/or as mixtures of psychoactive substances, also often combined with other drugs or ethyl alcohol, which can change how receptors function, whether they be adrenergic, serotonergic, or dopaminergic, opioid and/or cannabinoid. Identifying NPS users is difficult because of the constantly changing range of new drugs available, which poses analytical challenges in finding sufficiently advanced methods for their measurement in a biological fluid (i.e. blood, urine and saliva) under clinical conditions. The term toxidrome is used to cover adverse groups of signs and symptoms arising from the toxic effects of chemicals found in the body. For NPS, these include sympathomimetic, anticholinergic, opioid and cholinergic effects, which in health-rescue situations can confuse and hinder point-of-care delivery by enhancing or partially eliminating symptoms. The NPS include stimulants, synthetic opioids, dissociative anaesthetics, synthetic cannabinoids and unclassified substances. Acute poisoning can also be fatal, primarily when taking synthetic opioids. There is still a poor understanding of the long-term somatic and psychological complications of abusing NPS and any treatment options for addicts. It is, therefore, necessary to expand those prophylactic measures targeted at various social groups to prevent the spread of NPS.