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NEWS: Police warn of fatal red party pills

killarava2day

killarava2day

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Police warn of fatal red party pills
By Ruth Pollard
December 21, 2004


Unusually strong ecstasy is on the streets, causing fatal and non-fatal overdoses.

The active ingredient in ecstasy, MDMA, has traditionally been in very low quantities in pills sold in Australia.

But Paul Dillon, spokesman for the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, said recent data obtained by police in NSW, Victoria and South Australia showed that ecstasy pills containing MDMA were significantly stronger than Australian users had been used to.

Most overdoses have been in South Australia.

A 19-year-old man died in Adelaide this month after he overdosed on the drug, and in October a 38-year-old South Australian man died after an ecstasy overdose. Both had taken a red ecstasy pill branded with the Mitsubishi label.

Toxicology tests found the "red Mitsubishi" tablets, as well as other kinds of ecstasy, contained 110 milligrams of MDMA.

Mr Dillon said the big problems associated with ecstasy were related to dehydration and overheating, both directly linked to MDMA. "With these high-strength pills it would appear that some people are getting into real difficulty with the drug . . .With the current batch of pills, overdose is a very real risk."

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/12/20/1103391705472.html
 
Police warn of killer red party pills
By Ruth Pollard, Health Reporter
December 21, 2004

An unusually strong batch of ecstasy is on the streets, causing fatal and non-fatal overdoses around the country, drug experts and police have warned.

The active ingredient in ecstasy, MDMA, had traditionally been included in very low quantities in pills sold in Australia, said Paul Dillon, spokesman for the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre.

But recent data obtained by police in NSW, Victoria and South Australia showed that ecstasy pills containing MDMA were significantly stronger than what Australian users were used to, Mr Dillon said. The commander of the NSW Drug Squad, Detective Superintendent David Laidlaw, said: "With the taking of any type of drug it can be fatal - you just don't know."

While there was usually an increase in drug use around the country over the holidays, Superintendent Laidlaw said most fatal and non-fatal overdoses had been in South Australia.

A 19-year-old man died in Adelaide this month after he overdosed on the drug, and in October a 38-year-old South Australian man also died after an ecstasy overdose. Both had taken a red ecstasy pill branded with the Mitsubishi label originally thought to have contained the highly toxic para-methoxyamphetamine, or PMA.

"The pills ... actually had a very high content of MDMA," said David Caldicott, an emergency research fellow in toxicology at Royal Adelaide Hospital. "Ecstasy has been very poor in this country in terms of purity - it has traditionally contained between 50 and 130 milligrams [of MDMA] with the majority down at the lower end of the scale."

Toxicology tests found the "red Mitsubishi" tablets, as well as other kinds of ecstasy, contained 110 milligrams of MDMA. "If in the past you were used to taking two to three pills to get a high, and you take [that many] containing 110 milligrams, you are going to take a toxic dose," he said.

Mr Dillon agreed, saying the big problems associated with ecstasy were related to dehydration and overheating, both directly linked to MDMA. "With these high-strength pills it would appear that some people are getting into real difficulty with the drug [and] once again we come down to the simple fact that MDMA ... is not a safe drug," he said. "With the current batch of pills, overdose is a very real risk."

Urging drug users to be cautious over the party season, Adam Winstock, the clinical director for drug health services at South Western Sydney Area Health Service, described the dangers of ecstasy use as "a lottery".

"You will always have that uncertainty, but there are also other, underlying physical problems that people might have [that add to the danger], such as heart problems or idiosyncratic, non-predictable effects on their liver or brain," Dr Winstock said.

"It would not matter what [drugs] they had taken."

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National...red-party-pills/2004/12/20/1103391701906.html

Same article but extended version published on the SMH site...

This Dr David Caldicott seems to suggest that 300+mg of MDMA is a toxic dose? I thought the LD50 was about 6000mg?
 
I'd imagine that a toxic dose would be lower than a lethal dose...
 
Toxicology tests found the "red Mitsubishi" tablets, as well as other kinds of ecstasy, contained 110 milligrams of MDMA.
Click to expand...

Good stuff Paul. Now if we could only get access to that info as the pills hit the street. Still, it's good to see a deterrent message phrased like this, and even better to see the lab analysis state quantities in milligrams rather than as a percentage of active ingredients present.
 
I'd imagine that a toxic dose would be lower than a lethal dose...
Click to expand...

BUT, depending upon individual predisposition- perhaps general health or poly substance related- the dose response could vary considerably between the dose needed to cause noticeable toxic effects and that required to cause death.

In many ways it can be said that a toxic dose may only be slightly greater than that needed to produce euphoria.

If tryptophan hydroxylase is non-reversibly inhibited, terminal membranes are damaged on 5HT receptors, and serotonin and 5HT carriers are also depleted with x-amount, then wouldn't these actions be regarded as being toxic in effect?

It also needs to be appreciated that re-dosing after the initial euphoria has worn off creates a higher plasma level of MDMA and it's metabolites, meaning the lethal dose threshold may be further lowered for those susceptible.
 
Good to see a more plausable and level-headed explanation for the recent spate of overdoses than PMA or caffeine, wonder if the press will go to any efforts to make up for their previous senstationalist and misguided conclusions earlier?? Doubt it. :\
 
NEWS: Party-goers warned of killer pills

Party-goers warned of killer pills

EXTRA strong ecstasy has hit Australia's streets and nightclubs, with users of the party drug being warned they are at increased risk of a fatal overdose.

Police tests show many of the ecstasy pills now being sold contain much more of the active ingredient, MDMA, than users of the drug in this country are used to.

The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) has reported increased numbers of ecstasy users experiencing health problems, and the centre has now issued a warning to ecstasy users that the risk of overdosing has increased with the arrival of stronger pills.

NDARC spokesman Paul Dillon today said many pills sold as ecstasy contained no MDMA at all while the strong pills appearing on the market now could be up to 50 per cent MDMA.

Mr Dillon said the many ecstasy users who had started taking two or three pills at a time to get the desired effect could be caught out if they took stronger pills.

"Taking two or three of these pills at one time - you are getting a lot of MDMA in your system and that is very dangerous," he said.

Mr Dillon said ecstasy users tended to believe that the drug was safe and that it was impurities in their pills that caused health problems.

"There's a real belief out there that MDMA is safe," he said.

But in fact MDMA was usually the most toxic substance in party pills and could cause fatal and non-fatal overdoses, he said.

Ecstasy caused people to overheat and if an ecstasy user found that, even when they went somewhere cool, they could not cool down they could be at risk of overdosing, he said.

Mr Dillon said the high strength ecstasy pills came in all sorts of shapes and colours and could not be easily distinguished from normal strength pills.

The warning comes in the wake of a huge seizure of 161 kg of ecstasy tablets worth $40 million, discovered in a shipping container in Sydney last week.

AAP




Source
 
They mentioned on the radio that red mitzis were one of the stronger pills. Is this true anyone?
Or is it the pink/red ones?

Can anyone substantiate the above report against actual pills out there in the market?
 
Seen a few batches. The 'darker' reds all seemed to be MDMA (due to testing + peoples consumption reports). The salmon/pink colour pointed to it being PMA due to peoples reactions (no colour changes in any reagent tester)
 
Can anyone tell me which pills contain these strong doses of MDMA so that I can steer clear ;)

Its in the interest of harm minimisation =D
 
But in fact MDMA was usually the most toxic substance in party pills and could cause fatal and non-fatal overdoses, he said.
Click to expand...

When compared to vitamin C tablets
 
from the age....

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/12/20/1103391705472.html

Unusually strong ecstasy is on the streets, causing fatal and non-fatal overdoses.

The active ingredient in ecstasy, MDMA, has traditionally been in very low quantities in pills sold in Australia.

But Paul Dillon, spokesman for the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, said recent data obtained by police in NSW, Victoria and South Australia showed that ecstasy pills containing MDMA were significantly stronger than Australian users had been used to.

Most overdoses have been in South Australia.

A 19-year-old man died in Adelaide this month after he overdosed on the drug, and in October a 38-year-old South Australian man died after an ecstasy overdose. Both had taken a red ecstasy pill branded with the Mitsubishi label.

Toxicology tests found the "red Mitsubishi" tablets, as well as other kinds of ecstasy, contained 110 milligrams of MDMA.

Mr Dillon said the big problems associated with ecstasy were related to dehydration and overheating, both directly linked to MDMA. "With these high-strength pills it would appear that some people are getting into real difficulty with the drug . . .With the current batch of pills, overdose is a very real risk."
 
Re: NEWS: Party-goers warned of killer pills

haste said:
Party-goers warned of killer pills

EXTRA strong ecstasy has hit Australia's streets and nightclubs, with users of the party drug being warned they are at increased risk of a fatal overdose.
Click to expand...


WTF is this all about? Majority of pill around lately have been shit!
 
Quote.
"Seen a few batches. The 'darker' reds all seemed to be MDMA (due to testing + peoples consumption reports). The salmon/pink colour pointed to it being PMA due to peoples reactions (no colour changes in any reagent tester)"


I think you might have it the around the other way the pink mitsubishis where the ones that possibly were the mdma pills "from elighten test results, pill reports and personal testing"
and the dark red ones where being actully being labeled (on pill reports) even though the media was showing pictures of what ever mitsubishi they could find. (mainly pink)

Not having a go at any one....
thanks
=D
 
Evolution_mdma said:
Quote.
"Seen a few batches. The 'darker' reds all seemed to be MDMA (due to testing + peoples consumption reports). The salmon/pink colour pointed to it being PMA due to peoples reactions (no colour changes in any reagent tester)"


I think you might have it the around the other way the pink mitsubishis where the ones that possibly were the mdma pills "from elighten test results, pill reports and personal testing"
and the dark red ones where being actully being labeled (on pill reports) even though the media was showing pictures of what ever mitsubishi they could find. (mainly pink)

Not having a go at any one....
thanks
=D
Click to expand...


Trust me, I do not have it the wrong way around. Have about 30 friends who can vouch for the same thing (as they were shown the different batches). It's definitely a very pale pink/light shade that were the 'bad ones' we encountered. There were 4 or 5 shades of the darker pink/red that showed to be strong mdxx
 
Wow = it's nice to have an announcement that doesn't insult people's intelligence regarding the contents of pills sold as ecstasy, and actually admits there may be some MDMA pills on the market !
 
If this is all in relation to "red mitsubishi" its a bit late don't you think?

And im still inclined to believe that they are all the same (top bevel - bottom domed) just less dye in some - Until facts prove otherwise!
 
The salmon/light pink ones weren't top bevel - bottom domed. Thanks for reminding me on another difference as well.
 
Same batch ?

Is the the same batch that caused all those problems about 2 month ago in melb ?
 
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