Synthetic synthetic opioids, even worse than the original

[kan...@aol.com]

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/prescription-drug-abuse/in-depth/kratom/art-20402171

https://www.utmb.edu/mdnews/podcast/episode/even-worse-than-fentanyl

Kratom is a leaf. The active ingredient is about 2% of the leaf's weight. Think weak  pot.

But it now is refined into pure product and can bought in bulk. No regulation. 

So OD's are on the rise. Can't be detected by ordinary  tests; so ER victims aren't going to be diagnosed in a timely fashion. Kratom in  low doses is a mild stimulant; in larger doses acts like an opioid and is more potent than morphine. So it can be like a "speedball", cocaine/heroin combo. Attractive and dangerous. 

Nitazines are worse. Depending on formulation, they can be WAY more potent than fentanyl; which is already seriously potent. Again undetectable except in specialty labs. 

This trend will likely continue into the far future. If a substance is regulated, a very small alteration may not be. Presto; legal and dangerous drug. 

Better living through chemistry. 

I do wound care now; lucky me. 

[GMoney]

These mostly kill people who will eventually find another way to kill themselves anyway....aka "white trash". But they do take a few suburban innocents with them too.

Sort of like vaccine deniers....mostly it just kills them, but a few vaxxed folks might be victims too.

All in all though, the odds are in our favor. By "our" I mean the non-idiots.  I do feel for ER workers and other doctors though who were gullibly righteous enough to take that silly oath.  

[kan...@aol.com]

Thanks for the support of oath-taking docs

If I didn't know better, I'd think that the way drugs are evolving is a conspiracy to kill off users and the market for drugs. It's gotten to the point where almost any street drug is dangerous. Pills that look like oxy? Laced with fentanyl or worse. Any powdered drug? Laced. Marijuana? Can be laced too. Maybe this is Ayn Rand's world coming to life. The stupids just can't cut it. But you're right. A few innocents are going to die trying to "party". Not all white trash. Probably some entitled suburbanites with admittance to an Ivy thanks to Daddy's money are going to buy it. 

Just remember to take your Narcan nasal spray with you to your next party. 

As for the ER, treatment protocols don't really require identifying the offending drug. Opioids, and the synthetics, have a certain set of symptoms that trigger an established treatment plan. So we can still save the stupids from themselves. 

At this  point I think that the only reason that suppliers aren't making/selling even more potent drugs, like carfentanyl, is that they require NASA level cleanliness. Carfentanyl is so potent that a grain the size of a piece of dust is easily fatal. And it's absorbed through the skin. Police at drug busts have died from being exposed to the powder of fent and carfent. 

It's as brave new world. (You wanna another Dead reference? "What a long strange trip it's been")

Found out what whippets are (is? Is there such a thing as a single whippet; or is it like molasses?). Turns out this stuff can be bought legally in some states. The article I saw was about an incident in California. Another way for stupids to be stupid. 

I inhaled whippet when I was a resident. Six breaths and you're stoned like a good joint. Six more and you're sober again. What's not to like?