Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Heroin or is it?

I do a number of presentations to teenagers. No matter the beginning subject matter, I almost always get in a bit of “preachiness”. I throw in something about forestalling death. I don’t want to have to be the one to go and tell their parents that their child has died.

Because I am quite convinced that you can’t scare someone, particularly a teenager, into doing something or not doing something (I can’t with my own kids). My “preachiness” entails: “Stop and Think, Make Right Choices, Don’t Take Chances”. That covers a lot of ground, a lot of causes of death. It also brings me to something that I’ve been getting a lot of Media calls about over the last couple of days.

There was a cluster of seemingly heroin-related deaths in Chicago recently. It appears that the heroin in one “sale area” was cut (mixed) with a potent narcotic pain reliever. It is a very effective medicine for controlling severe pain, e.g. that experienced by someone with bone cancer. It is a 100 or more times potent than heroin, depending on the specific chemical analogue. As a matter of fact one of its analogues is used to “bring down” and anesthetize large animals (think elephant). So cutting heroin with fentanyl produces a highly lethal substance, as can be seen in the recent cluster of deaths. The heroin we typically see here in Lake County is cut with Diphenhydramine (an antihistamine that is also used as a sleep aid). That is not to say the local stuff is safe.

The “take home” message here, (one that I bring up in my presentations, in addition to the inherent killer potential of so many drugs) is that you never know what is mixed with the street drugs you buy or are given. There are no FDA or USDA standards for these drugs; you aren’t buying them from some chain drug store. You don’t know what’s in that sh*t.

Stop and Think, Make Good Choices, Don’t Take Chances.
The death you avoid may be your own.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I Like your Blog you have some good info but some is not true fentanyl is not used to tranqilize large game. Carfentanyl is the fentanyl analog that is used. It is 100x more potent than Fentanyl, which is only 80x more powerful than Morphine.

The heroin is not being cut with a pharmacuetical prerperation of Fentanyl [as that just doesn't happen]. What are they going to evaporate gallons of Fent. Citrate and scrape the residue and package it for sale, no. Are they going to use Duragesic patches or Actiq lolly-pop's? I dont think so.

This is illicit fentanyl most likely Alpha-methyl fentanyl or 3-methyl fentanyl. There is a batch in Chicago and idiotic gangsters dont know how to cut properly its not so simple, you need the know how. Which they have because its still being sold but the difference is noticible.

Anyways take a look at my blog it might help shead some light onto the matter for you.

http://www.junkylife.com/seedless

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Dr. Richard Keller said...

Thanks for the information and your input. I appreciate your honest blog and all the information it contains. I recommend everyone who might be interested to take a look, pull back the curtain and get an honest look.

Dr. Richard Keller said...

I am still learning how to do these things. I inadvertently deleated "seedless"'s 2nd comment. Here it is :

Oh and I will direct to my page concerning the recent OD's concerning Fentanyl. I am a recovering addict and my blog helps me get some of the bad things off my chest.

Here is my Fentanyl post one of a few of the recent rashes of OD's:
http://www.junkylife.com/seedless/index.php/2006/02/07/chicago-fentanyl-its-back-12-dead/

Lets try not to spread mis information as wisdom is key but abuse of that is destructive. Read what I have to say and follow the links in the blog you'll learn quite a bit, as I do from your site.

Peace,
Seedless
http://www.junkylife.com/seedless/

Follow my original link and let me know what you think. I bet there is going to be a HUGE rash of OD's this summer, better start handing out that Naloxone more frequently. Thank god for programs like Chicago Recovery Alliance [http//:www.anypositivechange.org/]. Somebody/criminal organization is sitting on a few kilo's of this stuff it will be certain death to the non habituated users.

Stay Safe and Practice Harm Reduction.

Anonymous said...

if someone dies from an OD and we know who the dealer was, can the drug-induced homicide statute be exercized?

Dr. Richard Keller said...

Yes. The drug-induced homicide statute allows for prosecution of anyone who supplies (sells to or gives to) another individual with drugs (illicit or "legal" drugs, other rightly prescribed for that individual) that result in that other persons death. A few individuals locally have been charged with drug-induced homicide and successfully prosecuted for the crime.