FW: PRO/EDR> Krokodil, homemade opiate blend - USA: skin necrosis
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Maffei, Joanne
Nov 5, 2013, 12:16:17 PM11/5/13
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This is an interesting report - we just had a similar case at Kenner with extensive skin necrosis - but they weren't greenish-black.
-----Original Message-----
From: promed-ed...@promedmail.org [mailto:promed-ed...@promedmail.org] On Behalf Of prome...@promedmail.org
Sent: Sunday, November 03, 2013 10:39 PM
To: prome...@promedmail.org; promed-...@promedmail.org
Subject: PRO/EDR> Krokodil, homemade opiate blend - USA: skin necrosis
KROKODIL, HOMEMADE OPIATE BLEND - USA: SKIN NECROSIS
****************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases <http://www.isid.org>
[1]
Date: 2 Nov 2013
Source: Enstarz.com [edited]
<http://www.enstarz.com/articles/28232/20131102/flesh-easting-drug-krokodil-latest-news-updates-videos-outbreak-spreads-across-u-s-watch-graphic-video.htm>
A flesh-eating drug that was 1st found in Arizona in September 2013
has now spread further east with a reported case of the drug's usage
in Columbus, Ohio.
The drug, Krokodil, originally discovered in Russia a decade ago,
appeared in the United States back in September 2013, when 2 cases of
the drug surfaced at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix,
as Enstars reported. The drug has now spread to Ohio, where a homeless
man, suffering from the greenish-black legions associated with the
drug, told medics he had used it.
"The patient had a large, open wound, and it is consistent with what
we've been seeing, or the trend when people use this type of
medicine," Deputy Fire Chief Jim Davis said.
Krokodil, Russian for "crocodile," is considered to be a cheaper and
more potent substitute for heroin and gets its name from the sores,
tissue damage, and rough scale-like appearance it leaves on the skin.
The drug is a homemade concoction, usually consisting of codeine pills
and household products such as paint thinner and gasoline. The
impurities in the chemicals can cause flesh to decay after injecting
the drug into the system.
Other cases of the drug have been reported in Oklahoma and Illinois as
well, according to The Huffington Post.
Despite the increase in cases being reported in various states, the
Drug Enforcement Administration has yet to officially confirm the
presence of the drug in the U.S.
[Byline: Lauren DuBois]
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail from HealthMap Alerts
<pro...@promedmail.org>
******
[2]
Date: 1 Nov 2013
Source: Huffington Post
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/01/krokodil-flesh-eating-drug-ohio_n_4192328.html>
Krokodil, Flesh-Eating Drug, Reported In Columbus, Ohio
--------------------------
Authorities in Columbus, Ohio, say they may have encountered their 1st
case of the flesh-eating drug, krokodil.
A homeless man in Columbus told medics he had used the drug, which
derives its name from the green-black lesions it leaves on the skin of
users after injection.
"The patient had a large, open wound and it is consistent with what
we've been seeing, or the trend when people use this type of medicine
[sic]," Deputy Fire Chief Jim Davis told WBNS-TV on Friday.
Other cases of the homemade morphine derivative has been reported in
Arizona, Illinois and Oklahoma. To date, the Drug Enforcement
Administration has not confirmed the presence of krokodil in the
United States, although cases in the Chicago suburbs came under
investigation in October after a local doctor reported seeing the
drug's telltale gangrenous lesions.
Krokodil was 1st reported in Russia several years ago. It is made by
cooking crushed codeine pills with household hydrocarbons such as
paint thinner and gasoline. Krokodil is reportedly cheaper and more
potent than heroin, but the impurities in the household chemicals
cause flesh to decay after injection.
"It almost starts like a burn from a cigarette," Amber Neitzel, a
reported krokodil user, told ABC Chicago affiliate WLS in October. "It
starts purple and then goes into a blister after 5 or 6 days."
"You literally start rotting from the inside out," Dr. Abhin Singla,
who said he treated krokodil users in Joliet, Ill., told the
Sun-Times. "It's a horrific way to get sick. "Intensive treatment and
skin grafts are required, but they are often not enough to save limbs
or lives."
But despite the horror stories, some officials remain skeptical that
the so-called "horror drug" is making inroads in the United States.
People who inject drugs put themselves at risk for similar infections
if they use dirty needles.
"We see IV drug users with horrible infections on a daily basis,"
Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics spokesman Mark Woodward told The
Huffington Post in October [2013]. "Infections from bacteria and dirty
needles -- that doesn't mean it's [krokodil]."
But some people remain convinced that krokodil is an emerging threat.
"If it's on the table of our drug users, it's gonna get out there,"
Roger Lowe, who runs a traveling needle exchange in Northeastern Ohio,
told WKYC in October [2013]. "I think we're gonna see more of it and
I'm terrified of what's gonna happen."
By Andres Jauregui
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
<pro...@promedmail.org>
[This homemade concoction of fuel and narcotics literally eats the
body from the inside out. The lesions appear to have no cure and are
reported to be painful and devastating. The concoction is not pure and
may not be homogenous, and in some cases those choosing to use the
drug have injected straight fuel into the veins. Most people choosing
to use this drug are dead inside of 2 years. The warning here is for
people to know what they are doing and for parents to know about the
lethal effects of this combination and to warn children, teens and
young adults. - Mod.TG
A HealthMap/ProMED-mail map can be accessed at:
<http://healthmap.org/r/1hiS>.]
.................................................sb/tg/msp/mpp
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information, and of any statements or opinions based
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using information posted or archived by ProMED-mail. ISID
and its associated service providers shall not be held
responsible for errors or omissions or held liable for any
damages incurred as a result of use or reliance upon posted
or archived material.
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-----Original Message-----
From: promed-ed...@promedmail.org [mailto:promed-ed...@promedmail.org] On Behalf Of prome...@promedmail.org
Sent: Sunday, November 03, 2013 10:39 PM
To: prome...@promedmail.org; promed-...@promedmail.org
Subject: PRO/EDR> Krokodil, homemade opiate blend - USA: skin necrosis
KROKODIL, HOMEMADE OPIATE BLEND - USA: SKIN NECROSIS
****************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases <http://www.isid.org>
[1]
Date: 2 Nov 2013
Source: Enstarz.com [edited]
<http://www.enstarz.com/articles/28232/20131102/flesh-easting-drug-krokodil-latest-news-updates-videos-outbreak-spreads-across-u-s-watch-graphic-video.htm>
A flesh-eating drug that was 1st found in Arizona in September 2013
has now spread further east with a reported case of the drug's usage
in Columbus, Ohio.
The drug, Krokodil, originally discovered in Russia a decade ago,
appeared in the United States back in September 2013, when 2 cases of
the drug surfaced at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix,
as Enstars reported. The drug has now spread to Ohio, where a homeless
man, suffering from the greenish-black legions associated with the
drug, told medics he had used it.
"The patient had a large, open wound, and it is consistent with what
we've been seeing, or the trend when people use this type of
medicine," Deputy Fire Chief Jim Davis said.
Krokodil, Russian for "crocodile," is considered to be a cheaper and
more potent substitute for heroin and gets its name from the sores,
tissue damage, and rough scale-like appearance it leaves on the skin.
The drug is a homemade concoction, usually consisting of codeine pills
and household products such as paint thinner and gasoline. The
impurities in the chemicals can cause flesh to decay after injecting
the drug into the system.
Other cases of the drug have been reported in Oklahoma and Illinois as
well, according to The Huffington Post.
Despite the increase in cases being reported in various states, the
Drug Enforcement Administration has yet to officially confirm the
presence of the drug in the U.S.
[Byline: Lauren DuBois]
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail from HealthMap Alerts
<pro...@promedmail.org>
******
[2]
Date: 1 Nov 2013
Source: Huffington Post
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/01/krokodil-flesh-eating-drug-ohio_n_4192328.html>
Krokodil, Flesh-Eating Drug, Reported In Columbus, Ohio
--------------------------
Authorities in Columbus, Ohio, say they may have encountered their 1st
case of the flesh-eating drug, krokodil.
A homeless man in Columbus told medics he had used the drug, which
derives its name from the green-black lesions it leaves on the skin of
users after injection.
"The patient had a large, open wound and it is consistent with what
we've been seeing, or the trend when people use this type of medicine
[sic]," Deputy Fire Chief Jim Davis told WBNS-TV on Friday.
Other cases of the homemade morphine derivative has been reported in
Arizona, Illinois and Oklahoma. To date, the Drug Enforcement
Administration has not confirmed the presence of krokodil in the
United States, although cases in the Chicago suburbs came under
investigation in October after a local doctor reported seeing the
drug's telltale gangrenous lesions.
Krokodil was 1st reported in Russia several years ago. It is made by
cooking crushed codeine pills with household hydrocarbons such as
paint thinner and gasoline. Krokodil is reportedly cheaper and more
potent than heroin, but the impurities in the household chemicals
cause flesh to decay after injection.
"It almost starts like a burn from a cigarette," Amber Neitzel, a
reported krokodil user, told ABC Chicago affiliate WLS in October. "It
starts purple and then goes into a blister after 5 or 6 days."
"You literally start rotting from the inside out," Dr. Abhin Singla,
who said he treated krokodil users in Joliet, Ill., told the
Sun-Times. "It's a horrific way to get sick. "Intensive treatment and
skin grafts are required, but they are often not enough to save limbs
or lives."
But despite the horror stories, some officials remain skeptical that
the so-called "horror drug" is making inroads in the United States.
People who inject drugs put themselves at risk for similar infections
if they use dirty needles.
"We see IV drug users with horrible infections on a daily basis,"
Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics spokesman Mark Woodward told The
Huffington Post in October [2013]. "Infections from bacteria and dirty
needles -- that doesn't mean it's [krokodil]."
But some people remain convinced that krokodil is an emerging threat.
"If it's on the table of our drug users, it's gonna get out there,"
Roger Lowe, who runs a traveling needle exchange in Northeastern Ohio,
told WKYC in October [2013]. "I think we're gonna see more of it and
I'm terrified of what's gonna happen."
By Andres Jauregui
--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
<pro...@promedmail.org>
[This homemade concoction of fuel and narcotics literally eats the
body from the inside out. The lesions appear to have no cure and are
reported to be painful and devastating. The concoction is not pure and
may not be homogenous, and in some cases those choosing to use the
drug have injected straight fuel into the veins. Most people choosing
to use this drug are dead inside of 2 years. The warning here is for
people to know what they are doing and for parents to know about the
lethal effects of this combination and to warn children, teens and
young adults. - Mod.TG
A HealthMap/ProMED-mail map can be accessed at:
<http://healthmap.org/r/1hiS>.]
.................................................sb/tg/msp/mpp
*##########################################################*
************************************************************
ProMED-mail makes every effort to verify the reports that
are posted, but the accuracy and completeness of the
information, and of any statements or opinions based
thereon, are not guaranteed. The reader assumes all risks in
using information posted or archived by ProMED-mail. ISID
and its associated service providers shall not be held
responsible for errors or omissions or held liable for any
damages incurred as a result of use or reliance upon posted
or archived material.
************************************************************
Donate to ProMED-mail. Details available at:
<http://www.isid.org/donate/>
************************************************************
Visit ProMED-mail's web site at <http://www.promedmail.org>.
Send all items for posting to: pro...@promedmail.org (NOT to
an individual moderator). If you do not give your full name
name and affiliation, it may not be posted. You may unsub-
scribe at <http://ww4.isid.org/promedmail/subscribe.php>.
For assistance from a human being, send mail to:
<postm...@promedmail.org>.
############################################################
############################################################
List-Unsubscribe: http://ww4.isid.org/promedmail/subscribe.php
________________________________
Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message from ILH, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
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