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Synthetic cannabinoids are psychoactive chemicals that are dissolved in solvents, applied to plant materials, and then smoked. They are sold under various labels (e.g., herbal incense) and names (e.g., Spice and K2) and have recently emerged as popular drugs of abuse. CDC investigators identified 16 patients (15 males; median age, 18.5 years) from 6 states who presented to emergency departments in 2012 with acute kidney injury after smoking a synthetic cannabinoid product.
Fifteen patients presented with nausea and vomiting and 12 had some combination of flank, abdominal, or back pain. All peak serum creatinine levels (range, 3.3–21.0 mg/dL; median, 6.7 mg/dL) were above laboratory reference ranges and occurred within 1 to 6 days after sympt…