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News & ArtsTuesday, September 1, 2009
Drugs Deadly Coke
Posted by Christopher Frizzelle on Tue, Sep 1, 2009 at 9:06 AM
King County Public Health put out an alert about this months ago, but the story won't go away: About a third of all cocaine seized in the United States these days is laced with a medication for killing parasites in livestock. The drug—levamisole—decimates your white blood cell count, compromising your immune system, essentially causing drug-induced AIDS.
From the Associated Press:
The medication called levamisole has killed at least three people in the U.S. and Canada and sickened more than 100 others. It can be used in humans to treat colorectal cancer, but it severely weakens the body's immune system, leaving patients vulnerable to fatal infections... And health officials told the AP that most physicians know virtually nothing about its risks."I would think it would be fair to say the vast majority of doctors in the United States have no idea this is going on," said Eric Lavonas, assistant director of the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center in Denver, where as much as half of the cocaine is believed to contain levamisole. "You can't diagnose a disease you've never heard of."
Jumping ahead:
In Spokane, Wash., a woman in her mid-40s who tested positive for cocaine turned up at a hospital suffering from rashes and other maladies. She eventually died, and the doctor who investigated suspected she had used cocaine laced with levamisole. Doctors suspect levamisole in at least three other illnesses in the Spokane area.
Levamisole is colorless, odorless, and hard to detect.
7
I'm not saying they did or they should but this would be a good strategy for the DEA. If people think they're going to die by trying drugs it might get people to stop.
It would be a sick evil thing to do but it just might work.
It would be a sick evil thing to do but it just might work.
9
Now if only there was a recreational drug that couldn't cause an overdose, wouldn't cause hallucinations or manic behavior, and could be grown at home so as to prevent someone from lacing it with poison. hmmm....
12
I don't get it - where is the motive? Why add something to a product that is colorless and odorless that is harmful to your consumers? Does it somehow add to the high or cover poor quality? Something else is going on here....
13
@7 That basically IS the strategy of the DEA/ONDCP - make drug use so difficult and dangerous that people stop. They're making drug problems worse in order to get people to realize that drug problems are bad.
Anyway, here's the way to fix this right now: King County Public Health gets a gas chromotograph/mass spectrometer (or hires one from UW) and tests all seized drugs, then publishes that data on a Public Health website. Include region and date of the seizure, and what the suspect believed the drug to be.
You know, do what DanceSafe/Erowid does with the Ecstasy Lab Testing Project here:
http://www.ecstasydata.org
Anyway, here's the way to fix this right now: King County Public Health gets a gas chromotograph/mass spectrometer (or hires one from UW) and tests all seized drugs, then publishes that data on a Public Health website. Include region and date of the seizure, and what the suspect believed the drug to be.
You know, do what DanceSafe/Erowid does with the Ecstasy Lab Testing Project here:
http://www.ecstasydata.org
15
@12 - my theory is that someone knocked over a vet supplier or something and stole this stuff by accident or convenience. They then use it as a filler get more profit on their coke.
Is it really that common in the region's coke? Considering the number of people with regular coke habits, and how dangerous this substance seems to be, I doubt it's as common as half of all coke has it. I bet it's one wholesaler and his network that services the mountain west. Are there reports of this in Chicago, LA, NY, Miami, or Dallas?
Is it really that common in the region's coke? Considering the number of people with regular coke habits, and how dangerous this substance seems to be, I doubt it's as common as half of all coke has it. I bet it's one wholesaler and his network that services the mountain west. Are there reports of this in Chicago, LA, NY, Miami, or Dallas?
16
I am a poor commenter today - failed to read the back up story carefully before spouting off. If the additive does create elevated dopamine in a weakened product and is being inserted in the stream as far back as Columbia, I now more whole-heartedly agree with very early commenters that removing the criminal element is virtually the only sane response.
17
@1 = perfect response. We have to show our driver's licenses to the pharmacist now to get our hands on Sudafed, why can't we do the same thing with other, more awesome, drugs?
18
It's probably CIA/DEA supplied coke.
Hey, just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean the gubmint isn't poisoning drug users.
Hey, just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean the gubmint isn't poisoning drug users.
19
I was thinking Swine flu would take a toll on smokers. Sounds like it be even worse for the tokers.
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