A group of powerful synthetic opioids that were first
detected in the country just a year ago may have already
been linked to several deaths.
A notification released
by High Alert late yesterday is just the latest in a series
of warnings about nitazenes, a family of synthetic opioids
that can be more potent than fentanyl.
Drug checking
providers also report seeing a concerning increase in the
synthetic opioids being sold as other substances, the NZ
Drug Foundation Te Puna Whakaiti Pāmamae Kai Whakapiri
says.
Drug Foundation Executive Director, Sarah Helm,
says the growing prevalence of nitazenes in the community is
concerning, especially if they are being sold as something
else.
“These are very potent drugs that can cause
overdose and death at very low doses, especially if people
don’t know that they’re taking them,” she
says.
“We’ve seen them sold around the country in
many different colours and forms including pills, powders,
gel caps and liquids. So we are urging people, no matter
what they have and how experienced they are, to get their
drugs checked if they can.”
Drug checking is a free,
legal, and confidential service available at clinics across
the country.
“We are concerned that the variety of
forms that these drugs can come in, and the
misrepresentation of what the drug is, may mean people with
little experience or preparation are at
risk.”
“Even people who are used to taking opioids
are finding themselves in trouble. Because these drugs are
so potent, it is hard to measure an accurate
dose.”
Helm says that the increase in nitazenes in
the community also shows why improving the availability of
naloxone, an opioid overdose reversal medicine, is
crucial.
“Naloxone saves lives and can reverse a
nitazene overdose. We’re urging people to get their hands
on it if they can, but we need to make it easier to get,”
she says.
Late yesterday, New Zealand’s drug early
warning system, High Alert, reported that an orange powder
sold in Wellington as butonitazene was found to be either
N-pyrrolidino-protonitazene or N-pyrrolidino-isotonitazene,
which are significantly more potent.
High Alert says
N-pyrrolidino-protonitazene has been implicated in many
deaths internationally and is thought to be 25 times more
potent than fentanyl.
In September, High Alert warned
that yellow tablets being sold online as oxycodone were
actually metonitazene.
—Advice for staying
safer if you’re using drugs:
Get your drugs
checked at a free drug checking clinic.
Avoid using
drugs alone.
Avoid mixing substances, especially two
or more depressants like alcohol, opioids, GHB/GBL,
ketamine, and benzodiazepines
Crush and mix your
substance, start with a very low dose, and avoid taking
more.
Swallowing a substance means it has a slower
onset than other methods and means there might be more time
to get medical help if needed.
Have naloxone with
you
The effects of nitazenes can
include:
Feeling euphoric or in a
‘dreamlike’ state.
Sedation (‘the nod’ –
being drowsy and then jerking awake).
Temporary relief
of pain, stress, or low mood.
Severe nausea and/or
vomiting.
Severe sweating or fever.
Slowed
and/or difficulty breathing.
Blue lips or
fingertips.
Cold and clammy skin.
Pinpoint
(tiny) pupils.
Seizures.
Becoming unresponsive
and/or losing consciousness.
How to identify
an opioid overdose
If someone shows any of
these symptoms after taking a substance, call 111 and ask
for an ambulance immediately.
You should also give
them naloxone if you have it (you may need more than one
dose).
The person’s face is pale and/or feels clammy
to the touch.
Their body goes limp.
Their
fingernails or lips have a purple or blue colour.
They
start vomiting or making gurgling or snoring
noises.
They cannot be awakened or are unable to
respond
Their pupils become very small.
Their
breathing and/or heartbeat slows or stops.
Report any
unusual effects to High Alert via their
website.
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