General Information

Heroin (JR0042951)
Country	# of patent	status
Israel	120643 granted	in renewal
International	PCT/ IL98/ 00162	WO 98/45714
Europe	98912691	in examination

Cocae

Also referred to as:
"brown sugar", "sugar", and "stuff". Street heroin is classified numerically from 1-4.
Heroin No.4 is often called "new China white".

Heroin-cocaine combinations are referred to as "cocktail" and "speedball".

» Source

Raw opium is the dried milky juice of the opium poppy seed capsules. The juice contains the following powerful drugs: morphine (about 8-14%), narcotine ( about 2-8%), papaverine (about 0.7-3%), and thebaine (about 0.2-1%). The best-known drugs made from raw opium are heroin and morphine.

Heroin is a semi-synthetic drug manufactured from morphine or opium by double acetylation. First made in 1874 and used as a very strong painkiller, it was eventually withdrawn from the market because of its habit-forming potential.

The quality of heroin sold on the illegal market varies enormously. Street heroin generally is only 25-50% pure. "Heroin No. 4", which has been on the market for some time now, may be up to 80% pure. Heroin of this purity is absolutely lethal if injected uncut.

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» Appearance

Usually a brownish powder.

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» Modes of use

Intravenous, intramuscular and subcutaneous injection, inhalation, sniffing, snorting, The most common method is "fixing"; in which, the heroin (50-250 mg dissolved in aqueous citric or ascorbic acid) is injected intravenously. "Skin-popping" (intramuscular and subcutaneous injection) is also done. Many drug addicts practice "stereo shooting" – a shot of heroin in one arm and cocaine in the other. To avoid the "down" which occurs when the drug wears off, many drug addicts inject themselves daily with one high dose followed by several smaller doses.

Those who prefer to inhale heroin often lace their cigarettes with the drug. A second inhalation method is called the "Chinese" method, or "chasing the dragon." It involves heating heroin in a metal pan and inhaling the fumes. To sniff or snort heroin, one inhales the drug through the nose with the aid of metal or paper tubes. This requires larger amounts of heroin than injection. To get a "superhigh", many acute heroin addicts inject an extremely high dose. To minimize the risk of death, they generally do this near hospitals with intensive care units. They presume that the hospital will manage to resuscitate them from near-death so they can experience the "superhigh" again.

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» Indications of Heroin Abuse

Medical syringes
Candles to heat the heroin solution
Packets of citric acid.
Cords, belts, ribbons, rubber tubes, etc. to prepare the limb for injection
Soot-blackened spoons (to dissolve the heroin in)
Specially folded sheets of paper or cellophane or metal foil (folded into bags or stars) which are used as packaging ("hits")

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» Effect of Opiates

Opiatics depress the central nervous system, relieve pain, relax and induce sleep, produce respiratory depression and inhibit coughing. The body`s reaction to opiates varies, depending on a variety of factors including the person`s frequency of use.

The following symptoms are indicative of opiate intoxication

Life-threatening:
- Choking on one`s own vomit
- Circulatory collapse
- Pulmonary edema
- Respiratory paralysis
Not life-threatening:
- Diarrhea
- Fever
- Goose flesh
- Insomnia
- Muscle pain Narrowing of the pupils
- Nausea or vomiting Runny nose
- Sweating
- Tear flow
- Yawning
Chronic use leads to:
- Constipation
- Inability to perform coitus
- Irregular menstrual periods
- Listlessness
- Loss of libido
- Loss of weight.
- Severe psychological and physical dependenc

Hepatitis and AIDS are also frequently transmitted through the use of dirty injection needles.to the top

Increasing tolerance
Since the user develops tolerance to the drug, a higher and higher dose is needed to achieve the same effect. Tolerance decreases if the drug is not taken for a while. There is a danger of overdosing if use is resumed since the quantity that was tolerated previously is now too high. Increased tolerance affects the depressant action on the central nervous system.

A 200 mg dose of heroin is lethal, although people who have developed tolerance can survive doses several times higher.

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» Typical causes of Heroin overdoses that cause death

The drug addict assumed his tolerance would enable him to survive a fatal dose of heroin. He overcalculated the extra amount of heroin he needed to achieve his previous "high". He injected a form of heroin that was too pure. (A person who unwittingly injects uncut heroin no. 4 with a purity of more then 80% has no chance to survive.) He used two high starting doses following a period of abstinence. (A person who recommences injecting heroin at the same dose after a 3-week period of abstinence can expect immediate death.)

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» Drug combinations with heroin:

Dependence on multiple drugs ("cocktails") has become increasing popular and is now the rule. Abuse of heroin is frequently accompanied by abuse of other psychotropic agents or immoderate use of alcohol. The poor state of many addicts and the increasing number of deaths can be attributed to cocktail intoxication.

» Toxis Agents:

Forensic investigations show that toxic dilutents such as chemical fertilizers and chloride-based ant killers are still being used to dilute a drugs` purity. In this case, the toxic dilutent kills the addict instead of the drug overdose.

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