A powerful new synthetic opioid said to be more potent than fentanyl has been linked to dozens of recent deaths in the U.S., prompting warnings from health officials.Tennessee was an early hotspot, with the state’s health department announcing in March that more than 30 fatal overdoses had been associated with cychlorphine since October 2025.An April 2026 notice from the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy cited at least 41 Tennessee deaths between July 2025 and February 2026 and at least 55 deaths nationally.KRATOM INDUSTRY WARNS SYNTHETIC OPIOIDS SHOULD NOT BE CALLED 'KRATOM'Fatal overdoses have also been reported in Illinois, California and Oklahoma, according to public health and law enforcement records.A powerful new synthetic opioid said to be more potent than fentanyl has been linked to dozens of recent deaths in the U.S.(iStock)"Cychlorphine is particularly dangerous due to its strength, where a very small amount can cause someone to stop breathing," the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in its advisory.Nicholas Kardaras, Ph.D., CEO and chief clinical officer of the New York Center for Living in Manhattan and a clinical professor at Stony Brook Medicine’s School of Social Welfare, called cychlorphine "the new fentanyl on steroids."WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT PENTOBARBITAL AFTER DEATH ROW INMATE SURVIVES 2 LETHAL INJECTION DOSESCychlorphine is a novel, unregulated synthetic opioid that activates the same receptors as fentanyl, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
It can cause profound sedation, slowed or stopped breathing, and death.The drug is not approved for medical use and has been detected in illicit drugs and counterfeit pills.Younger people may face greater exposure because some are more likely to experiment with drugs or purchase counterfeit pills.(iStock)Kardaras called cychlorphine "one of the most potent synthetic opioids" now appearing in the illicit drug supply."Fentanyl is about 50 times more potent...