Stalking the elusive designer drugs: techniques for monitoring new problems in drug abuse

In the 1980s, the clandestine synthesis, distribution, and use of analogs of controlled substances became popular in the United States. These designer drugs comprise analogs of many different classes of psychoactive drugs and present a spectrum of adverse health effects ranging from mood changes to severe neurologic disease. Although there has been no unified program of surveillance for these drugs, a number of articles describing their presence in North American communities have appeared in a variety of publications. This paper summarizes the evidence of designer drug production and use, and recommends effective surveillance efforts that might be adopted by drug abuse prevention and public health agencies.