2024-07-08 18:19:27
The National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Healthcare Products (ANSM) has added a tiny, super-potent and invisible killer to the list of narcotics. Azazone, a member of the synthetic opioid family, is now banned “Production, sales and use”. The decision, implemented on Tuesday, July 9, is part of the backdrop of the rampant proliferation of this synthetic drug, which is available in liquid, powder, tablet, and even nasal spray or e-liquid form.
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The compound nitrazepam, synthesized in the late 1950s as an analgesic, was quickly withdrawn from sale due to its unfavorable benefit/risk ratio. The production, logistics and trade of these molecules, which are mainly made in China and are 500 times more powerful than morphine, are currently in the hands of criminal networks.
Nita Zenes ‘May cause overdose’ WHO “Due to its potency, it may occur suddenly within a short period of time following taking it and result in a life-threatening prognosis”, ANSM warning. These symptoms may include difficulty breathing, nausea, constricted pupils, and severe drowsiness, which may lead to fatal coma.
hard to find
Nitrazone has been alarming experts for months. In December 2023, a press release from the French Association of Addiction Vigilance Centers emphasized that these elements “Re-emergence in recreational substance markets such as the United States, Canada and Europe in 2019-2020”before their use becomes problematic in France in spring 2023, when they “Serious poisoning incident involving Occitanie and Reunion Island (with respiratory depression and death)”. Two deaths were directly attributed to these opioids, and several hospitalizations of seriously ill users were documented.
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Despite its devastating effects, nitrazene is difficult to detect. Traditional urine screens are not sufficient to detect them, and they may also be masked by the presence of other products in the body, such as heroin. Users often unknowingly experience the euphoric effects of this drug when mixed with other substances.
ANSM stresses that the timing of the decision to criminalize the use and trafficking of nitrazepine at the beginning of the summer was not insignificant. “The consumption of nitrazepine can form part of the festive backdrop, and the prospect of summer holidays and the hosting of the Olympics make this topic particularly topical”.
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