Thebaine 419with thebaine itself or with breakdown products formed from thebaine
through body chemistry. The same researchers declared that thebaine’s ability
to cause dependence is less than codeine’s. One dog experiment yielded un-
clear evidence of tolerance, evidence that has not been supported by other
work. Cross-tolerance with morphine has not been found in monkeys.
Drug interactions.In rats thebaine boostscaffeine’s effects.
Cancer.Not enough scientific information to report.
Pregnancy.After pregnant hamsters received thebaine their offspring had
more birth defects than normal, and such defects did not appear if the ham-
sters first received various drugs known to reduce opiate effects. A thebaine
dose sufficient to cause birth defects in hamsters tended to kill the pregnant
females, so not much has been determined about the drug’s potential to cause
hamster malformations.
Additional scientific information may be found in:
Halbach, H., et al. “The Dependence Potential of Thebaine.”Bulletin on Narcotics32,
no. 1 (1980): 45–54.
Waclawski, E.R., and R. Aldridge. “Occupational Dermatitis from Thebaine and Co-
deine.”Contact Dermatitis33 (1995): 51.
Woods, J.H., C.R. Schuster, and C.R. Hartel. “Behavioral Effects of Thebaine in the
Rhesus Monkey.”Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior14 (1981): 805–9.
Yanagita, T., et al. “Dependence Potential of Drotebanol, Codeine and Thebaine Tested
in Rhesus Monkeys.”Bulletin on Narcotics29, no. 1 (1977): 33–46.