Oregon researchers identify brain syndrome caused by inhaling fentanyl

PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — Oregon researchers have documented for the first time a brain syndrome caused by inhaling fentanyl.

The case study was published in the British Medical Journal.

The patient was a man in his 40s who had snorted crushed fentanyl in February of 2023.

An MRI revealed inflammation in the white matter of his brain.

It’s a condition doctors have seen in patients who have inhaled heroin, but the first time it has been documented after inhaling fentanyl.

Researchers said this side effect could lead to potentially irreversible brain damage.

“It can have a variety of effects. The patient that we took care of in the hospital initially was unable to communicate and unable to make purposeful movements,” said Dr. Chris Eden, an internal medicine resident physician at Oregon Health & Science University. “He slowly recovered over the span of months and is now a fully functioning person again, but that range in between could potentially happen to any patient with this syndrome.”

The patient was in the hospital for 26 days before going to a nursing facility for further rehabilitation.

The OHSU researchers said it is too early to tell how much fentanyl causes this syndrome.

No other opioids showed up in the patient’s tests, and the person had no physical signs of prior opioid use, leading them to believe this may have been his first time using fentanyl.

There may be others affected, but researchers said it’s likely underreported as many fentanyl users do not seek medical help, and when they do, they often don’t get the brain imaging needed to diagnose it.