Drug abuse is changing fast: Old drugs are falling from favor, new ones are growing

In recent years, hundreds of new drugs have appeared on the recreational drugs market in Europe and the U.S. New psychoactive substances, mainly stimulants and cannabinoids from China sold on the internet, proliferate too quickly for anyone to keep track of them. Websites such as Erowid.org create lists of those drugs.

It is all part of the rapid diversification of recreational drugs, fuelled by chemical ingenuity and by new distribution possibilities opened up by the internet.

New drugs of misuse, including ketamine, gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), and a range of synthetic stimulants, have become part of global recreational drug culture. Use in combination with other substances (especially alcohol) is common and increases the associated health risks.

"A to Z" list of substances

"Talk to Frank" is a British government-funded website for drug abuse prevention and treatment tips for the general public available at http://talktofrank.com

The "A to Z" list of substances explains appearance and use, effects, chances of getting hooked, health risks and the UK law. It also includes information on peer pressure, etc.



References:

Drug use and abuse. The Economist, 2011.

New recreational drugs and the primary care approach to patients who use them. BMJ, 2012.

Comments from Facebook:

Pierrette Mimi Poinsett: And alcohol and tobacco remain the two most abused drugs eclipsing all the others combined.

New Complication from Contaminated Cocaine - Bilateral Necrosis of the Ear Lobes and Cheeks

Interesting fact: Traces of cocaine taint up to 90% of paper money in the United States. Paper money become contaminated with cocaine during drug deals and directly through drug use, such as snorting cocaine through rolled bills. Amounts of cocaine found on U.S. bills ranged from 0.006-1,240 micrograms of cocaine per banknote (50 grains of sand) (http://bit.ly/27V5Yt).

Since 2005, levamisole (commonly used as to treat worm infections in humans and animals), has increasingly been used to mix cocaine for street use.

In 2009, 70% of cocaine seized at U.S. borders contained levamisole, causing an increase in cases of neutropenia among cocaine abusers.

Recently, researchers observed a new complication of levamisole contamination – vasculitis. Two cocaine abusers with similar cases of neutropenia and vasculitis presented to the University of Rochester Medical Center within 8 days of each other - with purplish plaques on their cheeks, earlobes, legs, thighs and buttocks. While the patients were not tested for levamisole levels, exposure was likely due to recent cocaine use.

Doctors should suspect levamisole exposure in patients presenting with both neutropenia and necrotic skin lesions.

See the dramatic photos from a similar case published in the NEJM here: Toxic Effects of Levamisole in a Cocaine User

References:
Bilateral Necrosis of Earlobes and Cheeks: Another Complication of Cocaine Contaminated With Levamisole. Ann of Int Med, June 1, 2010,  vol. 152  no. 11  758-759.

16% of motorists may be under the influence of drugs during weekends - one in six cars

Motorists under the influence of drugs are a growing threat on U.S. roads. If you think about driving on a Friday or Saturday evening about 16% of the vehicles - one in six of the cars - the driver will be under the influence of an illicit or licit drug.

"Drugged driving" hampers judgment, reaction time, driving skills and memory.

Video: "Fall down alcohol test".

References:

U.S. says drugged driving growing threat. Reuters.

Am I driving a car? Drunk motorist stuns police http://goo.gl/D9NOa
Drunk Driving, Distracted Driving, Moralism, and Public Health - NEJM
30% of U.S. adults have been arrested by age 23: study. Reuters, 2011.

Rock star Ozzy Osbourne to CNN: "Between drugs and STDs, I'm lucky to be alive today"

"Ozzy Osbourne, the former front man of rock group Black Sabbath, says that after decades of living a life of drugs and sex, he's lucky to be alive today.

Osbourne described how he often played a dangerous game when it came to using drugs and having promiscuous sex. "With the drugs, it nearly killed me on a daily basis -- I did a lot of heavy drug taking for a long time and I survived it by the grace of God.

Answering a viewer's question on whether he realized his power to change people's lives, Osbourne replied with shock. "When you're on the inside looking, you don't see it that way," Osbourne said. "But I suppose you're right. I do -- I do have the power to change people's lives."

References:
Ozzy Osbourne: I'm living on borrowed time. CNN.

"Researchers studying Ozzy Osbourne's DNA found that the singer is descendant of Neanderthals" http://goo.gl/7Fa8

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