The National Crime Agency in the UK has reported that a new black market substance has been connected to 176 deaths in the country. Scotland, which has the highest number of drug-related deaths in Europe, accounted for 47 of these fatalities. The substance in question is nitazene, which is more than often mixed into ecstasy tablets and other drugs.

Nitazenes are synthetic opioids that were developed in the late 1950s. Their chemical structure differs from other opioid drugs, such as fentanyl and morphine. Some nitazenes can be up to 500 times more potent than heroin. Initially intended for treating severe pain, the use of nitazenes was found to carry a high risk of severe side effects, including life-threatening respiratory problems. As a result, they are not used in medicine today.

The reported deaths from nitazenes, as stressed by the National Crime Agency's Director General, Graeme Biggar, are only those detected in post-mortems. However, the actual number of fatalities from this opioid is likely higher. Biggar warned that the problem will get worse. He stated: "We need to disrupt it as much as we can, but this is hard because the drugs are cheap and small, and to organised criminals, this looks like a really good way of evolving your business."

A volunteer for the charity Aid and Abet, which helps people in addiction, commented on the problem for bbc.com. The woman was herself addicted to opioids, having survived nine overdoses. She explained why powerful synthetic drugs are particularly dangerous for opioid addicts. She explained: "The addiction is so powerful that you'll do anything to get the drugs, whether nitazene is in it or not. It's like Russian roulette. You just need to get the drugs, and that's it."

Source: bbc.com, mgr.frm