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Krokodil: Deadly Flesh-Eating Drug Arrives in US.....

MMC

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In the vast pharmacopeia of illegal street drugs, few have as heinous a reputation as desomorphine, popularly known as crocodile or "krokodil." An opiate that's chemically related to morphine and heroin, krokodil earned its name in two ways: Addicts develop dark, scaly lesions on their skin, and the drug tends to eat its victims alive, like a crocodile.

Krokodil first surfaced in Russia several years ago, where users discovered the drug was much cheaper than heroin and could easily be cooked in a kitchen by combining codeine with gasoline, oil, alcohol or paint thinner, Fox News reports.

And now, krokodil has arrived in the United States: Two cases of people addicted to the drug have been reported in Arizona. "As far as I know, these are the first cases in the United States," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio, director at Banner Good Samaritan Poison and Drug Information Center in Arizona, as quoted by Fox News. "So we're extremely frightened."

Like other opiates, krokodil is powerfully addictive, and even those users who kick the habit often walk away severely disfigured: severe scarring, bone damage, amputated limbs, speech impediments, poor motor skills and varying degrees of brain damage — for life.....snip~

Deadly Flesh-Eating Drug Arrives in US
LiveScience.com – 9 hrs ago


This is not good. We have way to many people all up into Heroin. This stuff is suppose to be stronger than Morphine and Heroin. Its analgesic effect is 10 times greater than that of morphine. They were hoping that it would never reach here. It appears it started in Russia too. We have to get on top of this Right away. We cant have young kids getting this stuff.

One would think even Other Dealers wouldn't want this stuff out there. Thoughts upon the matter?
 
In the vast pharmacopeia of illegal street drugs, few have as heinous a reputation as desomorphine, popularly known as crocodile or "krokodil." An opiate that's chemically related to morphine and heroin, krokodil earned its name in two ways: Addicts develop dark, scaly lesions on their skin, and the drug tends to eat its victims alive, like a crocodile.

Krokodil first surfaced in Russia several years ago, where users discovered the drug was much cheaper than heroin and could easily be cooked in a kitchen by combining codeine with gasoline, oil, alcohol or paint thinner, Fox News reports.

And now, krokodil has arrived in the United States: Two cases of people addicted to the drug have been reported in Arizona. "As far as I know, these are the first cases in the United States," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio, director at Banner Good Samaritan Poison and Drug Information Center in Arizona, as quoted by Fox News. "So we're extremely frightened."

Like other opiates, krokodil is powerfully addictive, and even those users who kick the habit often walk away severely disfigured: severe scarring, bone damage, amputated limbs, speech impediments, poor motor skills and varying degrees of brain damage — for life.....snip~

Deadly Flesh-Eating Drug Arrives in US
LiveScience.com – 9 hrs ago


This is not good. We have way to many people all up into Heroin. This stuff is suppose to be stronger than Morphine and Heroin. Its analgesic effect is 10 times greater than that of morphine. They were hoping that it would never reach here. It appears it started in Russia too. We have to get on top of this Right away. We cant have young kids getting this stuff.

One would think even Other Dealers wouldn't want this stuff out there. Thoughts upon the matter?

That article sucks, because it points a junkie right to how to make it. And that's where the problem will start. Junkies making it for themselves.

Its not the first time I've seen enough clues in a news article to point me to Google.

Instructions in the first search.
 
In the vast pharmacopeia of illegal street drugs, few have as heinous a reputation as desomorphine, popularly known as crocodile or "krokodil." An opiate that's chemically related to morphine and heroin, krokodil earned its name in two ways: Addicts develop dark, scaly lesions on their skin, and the drug tends to eat its victims alive, like a crocodile.

Krokodil first surfaced in Russia several years ago, where users discovered the drug was much cheaper than heroin and could easily be cooked in a kitchen by combining codeine with gasoline, oil, alcohol or paint thinner, Fox News reports.

And now, krokodil has arrived in the United States: Two cases of people addicted to the drug have been reported in Arizona. "As far as I know, these are the first cases in the United States," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio, director at Banner Good Samaritan Poison and Drug Information Center in Arizona, as quoted by Fox News. "So we're extremely frightened."

Like other opiates, krokodil is powerfully addictive, and even those users who kick the habit often walk away severely disfigured: severe scarring, bone damage, amputated limbs, speech impediments, poor motor skills and varying degrees of brain damage — for life.....snip~

Deadly Flesh-Eating Drug Arrives in US
LiveScience.com – 9 hrs ago


This is not good. We have way to many people all up into Heroin. This stuff is suppose to be stronger than Morphine and Heroin. Its analgesic effect is 10 times greater than that of morphine. They were hoping that it would never reach here. It appears it started in Russia too. We have to get on top of this Right away. We cant have young kids getting this stuff.

One would think even Other Dealers wouldn't want this stuff out there. Thoughts upon the matter?

I think Darwin was on to something
 
That article sucks, because it points a junkie right to how to make it. And that's where the problem will start. Junkies making it for themselves.

Its not the first time I've seen enough clues in a news article to point me to Google.

Instructions in the first search.

Straight from LiveScience too.....what gets me is that part of it saying. "they were hoping it wouldn't find its way here." Knowing this broke out in Russia. Knowing this would enter the heroin trade.

What this does to a person is unbelievable.
 
I think Darwin was on to something

Yeah he may have.....especially if thinking only when it concerns adults. I can't go for this crap being used on kids and in the under-trades, and all related manners of influence. Don't know if you were or have been listening to the news. Heroin use is up majorly and with young kids.
 
Straight from LiveScience too.....what gets me is that part of it saying. "they were hoping it wouldn't find its way here." Knowing this broke out in Russia. Knowing this would enter the heroin trade.

What this does to a person is unbelievable.

Fortunately OUR society is media dense enough to disseminate the lowdown so it shouldn't be more than a "darwin" situation for our society as a whole.

Junkies making it for themselves, with some slopover. News reports with pictures. Should keep it limited.

This kind of thing is worse where life is cheap. Its not THAT bad most places here, even where its pretty bad.

We can hope, anyway.

At least its codeine. Can't even get that in Mexico without a scrip.
 
Sounds like a bit of hype to me. I had to look it up, because it sounded like an opiate derivative. Yep. It's an opiate. And people inject toxic stuff into themselves with opiates.

But the scare quotes in the article remind me of Reefer Madness...

This Heroin Alternative “Eats Flesh” – But How?

Newsmax went with the scare quotes in their headline. Do you think they just wanted to scare those that lean to the Right?

Flesh-Eating Drug 'Krokodil': 2 Cases in Arizona Worry Experts

There have been two cases reported in Arizona of people using a drug street-named "krokodil" that can rot flesh, according to Banner’s Poison Control Center.

"We've had two cases this past week that have occurred in Arizona," Dr. Frank LoVecchio, the co-medical director at Banner's Poison Control Center, told local station CBS5. "As far as I know, these are the first cases in the United States that are reported. So we're extremely frightened.”

Banner Poison Control Center officials believe the two Arizona cases are linked, but did not provide further details on the patients’ conditions.

Time magazine reported that in 2010, somewhere between a few hundred thousand and a million people injected the drug. Officials fear the drug will catch on in the U.S.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com 2 Arizona Cases of Flesh-Eating Drug 'Krokodil' Worry Experts
Urgent: Should Obamacare Be Repealed? Vote Here Now!

Its suppose to be cheaper than heroin too. Makes it even worse.
 
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Fortunately OUR society is media dense enough to disseminate the lowdown so it shouldn't be more than a "darwin" situation for our society as a whole.

Junkies making it for themselves, with some slopover. News reports with pictures. Should keep it limited.

This kind of thing is worse where life is cheap. Its not THAT bad most places here, even where its pretty bad.

We can hope, anyway.

At least its codeine. Can't even get that in Mexico without a scrip.

They should have let us know if they came from Russia or if they had been there.....IMO. Might be able to find any others that came in with them. If they were from there.
 
In the vast pharmacopeia of illegal street drugs, few have as heinous a reputation as desomorphine, popularly known as crocodile or "krokodil." An opiate that's chemically related to morphine and heroin, krokodil earned its name in two ways: Addicts develop dark, scaly lesions on their skin, and the drug tends to eat its victims alive, like a crocodile.

Krokodil first surfaced in Russia several years ago, where users discovered the drug was much cheaper than heroin and could easily be cooked in a kitchen by combining codeine with gasoline, oil, alcohol or paint thinner, Fox News reports.

And now, krokodil has arrived in the United States: Two cases of people addicted to the drug have been reported in Arizona. "As far as I know, these are the first cases in the United States," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio, director at Banner Good Samaritan Poison and Drug Information Center in Arizona, as quoted by Fox News. "So we're extremely frightened."

Like other opiates, krokodil is powerfully addictive, and even those users who kick the habit often walk away severely disfigured: severe scarring, bone damage, amputated limbs, speech impediments, poor motor skills and varying degrees of brain damage — for life.....snip~

Deadly Flesh-Eating Drug Arrives in US
LiveScience.com – 9 hrs ago


This is not good. We have way to many people all up into Heroin. This stuff is suppose to be stronger than Morphine and Heroin. Its analgesic effect is 10 times greater than that of morphine. They were hoping that it would never reach here. It appears it started in Russia too. We have to get on top of this Right away. We cant have young kids getting this stuff.

One would think even Other Dealers wouldn't want this stuff out there. Thoughts upon the matter?

Hydrochloric acid is also used, which is most likely the cause of the "flesh eating" effects. I don't feel sorry for these people at all. They aren't victims, they're morons.
 
They should have let us know if they came from Russia or if they had been there.....IMO. Might be able to find any others that came in with them. If they were from there.

I'm sure its on google. Or the basic instructions can be gleaned from articles like the one in the OP.
 
Only the most desperate of the desperate would use such a dangerous drug.

I watched something on this awhile ago, and even heavy, destitute heroine addicts in Russia were basically saying "i'd rather go without, gather more money and get proper heroine".

The people that use this stuff, have really, truly let go of their lives.
 
Only the most desperate of the desperate would use such a dangerous drug.

I watched something on this awhile ago, and even heavy, destitute heroine addicts in Russia were basically saying "i'd rather go without, gather more money and get proper heroine".

The people that use this stuff, have really, truly let go of their lives.
And we should provide them with what they need so that they may enjoy the sweet embrace of death.
 
On the other hand, to be frank, a high mortality rate among users could cost the taxpayers less than drugs that make the users just as unproductive, but allow them to survive for decades.
 
In the vast pharmacopeia of illegal street drugs, few have as heinous a reputation as desomorphine, popularly known as crocodile or "krokodil." An opiate that's chemically related to morphine and heroin, krokodil earned its name in two ways: Addicts develop dark, scaly lesions on their skin, and the drug tends to eat its victims alive, like a crocodile.

Krokodil first surfaced in Russia several years ago, where users discovered the drug was much cheaper than heroin and could easily be cooked in a kitchen by combining codeine with gasoline, oil, alcohol or paint thinner, Fox News reports.

And now, krokodil has arrived in the United States: Two cases of people addicted to the drug have been reported in Arizona. "As far as I know, these are the first cases in the United States," said Dr. Frank LoVecchio, director at Banner Good Samaritan Poison and Drug Information Center in Arizona, as quoted by Fox News. "So we're extremely frightened."

Like other opiates, krokodil is powerfully addictive, and even those users who kick the habit often walk away severely disfigured: severe scarring, bone damage, amputated limbs, speech impediments, poor motor skills and varying degrees of brain damage — for life.....snip~

Deadly Flesh-Eating Drug Arrives in US
LiveScience.com – 9 hrs ago


This is not good. We have way to many people all up into Heroin. This stuff is suppose to be stronger than Morphine and Heroin. Its analgesic effect is 10 times greater than that of morphine. They were hoping that it would never reach here. It appears it started in Russia too. We have to get on top of this Right away. We cant have young kids getting this stuff.

One would think even Other Dealers wouldn't want this stuff out there. Thoughts upon the matter?

There is not a lot of info on this drug, and I cannot see it taking off like it did in russia according to what I have read. One, we have readily available heroin which was not available as easily in russia at the time. Two, our OTC cough medicines do not contain codeine like they did in russia at the time, so purifying OTCs into a more potent high like in meth would not be required. For people who do get prescribed codeine it is already in a readily abusable form and the stripping process from russia would not be entirely needed chemically. Part of the chemical conversion process would be the removal of the extras in the OTC. Without the readily available easy to obtain OTC this almost seems worthless to a dealer or user. One of the reasons this may have become popular in russia is the purification of the codeine from a mix may have resulted in a different product. It might have just been easier to sell the crappy product of the purification product than to synthesize it back into something safer. If you are getting pure presxcribed codeine you would cut out that middle step of purification.

Yes, i could imagine some idiots playing around with it for curiosity sake but considering the availability of alternatives and the nature of how codeine is prescribed I couldn't imagine this becoming a huge problem. Very simply meth is a problem because it is synthesized from easily obtainable OTCs and the yield is decent. You would already have had to break the law to get yourself some codeine, and it would actually be easier to get heroin, vicadin, or morphine. Even dealers would not have much cause to screw with this to sell because they could simply sell the codeine. Something to beware of, but the environment is different and I don't see this being much of an alternative for stuff we already have without something drastic changing like codeine becoming OTC medication again.
 
That article sucks, because it points a junkie right to how to make it. And that's where the problem will start. Junkies making it for themselves.

Its not the first time I've seen enough clues in a news article to point me to Google.

Instructions in the first search.

reduction reactions are often needed to be done in a specific order It is not always as simple as just tossing all those things in and hoping. If you use too much of one thing or too little you can screw up yields, taint the final product, or completely blow the reaction. Not that instructions are not out there, but the reality is someone who is looking to make something like this is already well aware of where to look. Also, the US does not sell OTCs with codeine in it like russia was at the time. But for those people stupid enough to ruin pure codeine for less effect than a heroin high who the hell cares if they make short work of their dumbasses.
 
Disgusting! Anyone who does this drug is an idiot plain and simple.
 
Sounds like a bit of hype to me. I had to look it up, because it sounded like an opiate derivative. Yep. It's an opiate. And people inject toxic stuff into themselves with opiates.

But the scare quotes in the article remind me of Reefer Madness...

This Heroin Alternative “Eats Flesh” – But How?

Please don't do this unless you have a strong stomach, but if you think it's hype, Google it and look around images and videos. It literally peels skin right off the bone. What it does to the mind is even more horrific, in its own right. Very few people manage to recover from krokodil before the die, since the average addict only lives for a couple years, but of the few that do, they look like they've been violently lobotomized. Their mind is gone. They're vacant invalids.

I was in Europe right when krokodil was spreading outside Russia. I hung out with street performers and buskers a lot, who are never too far from the vagrants. Two of them took to krokodil. Within 2 weeks, they had sores. Within 6 months, they were gone. No one is sure what happened, but they were probably dead.

At the time, I gave it 5 years until it came to the US. I have never been less happy to be right.

I have seen meth heads. Speed freaks. Heroin addicts. I've seen it all. But I have never seen anything like a krokodil addict. It is horrifying.

What they're like when they try to stop is even worse. Heroin withdrawal is famous for the extreme pain it leaves the addict with, which last for several days.

Krokodil withdrawal is even more agonizing. And it doesn't let up for an entire month. Usually, they just keep the patient sedated the entire time, otherwise they would lose consciousness from the agony. Quitting without medical assistance is impossible. You'll die.

The worst of all is it's easy to make. It's a cooking drug, like meth. There's no cartels to target. People make it in their own homes, with ingredients they purchased legitimately.

I worry that there will be hotspots of krokodil use in America. Western Europe was pretty lucky. It's not that bad there. But addicts have more hope in recovery in Western Europe than they do in most of the United States, or in Russia, where it's a terrible problem.

I fear the lack of practical and humane assistance for poor addicts in the US will turn this into an epidemic in some places.
 
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Please don't do this unless you have a strong stomach, but if you think it's hype, Google it and look around images and videos. It literally peels skin right off the bone. What it does to the mind is even more horrific, in its own right. Very few people manage to recover from krokodil before the die, since the average addict only lives for a couple years, but of the few that do, they look like they've been violently lobotomized. Their mind is gone. They're vacant invalids.

I was in Europe right when krokodil was spreading outside Russia. I hung out with street performers and buskers a lot, who are never too far from the vagrants. Two of them took to krokodil. Within 2 weeks, they had sores. Within 6 months, they were gone. No one is sure what happened, but they were probably dead.

At the time, I gave it 5 years until it came to the US. I have never been less happy to be right.

I have seen meth heads. Speed freaks. Heroin addicts. I've seen it all. But I have never seen anything like a krokodil addict. It is horrifying.

What they're like when they try to stop is even worse. Heroin withdrawal is famous for the extreme pain it leaves the addict with, which last for several days.

Krokodil withdrawal is even more agonizing. And it doesn't let up for an entire month. Usually, they just keep the patient sedated the entire time, otherwise they would lose consciousness from the agony. Quitting without medical assistance is impossible. You'll die.

The worst of all is it's easy to make. It's a cooking drug, like meth. There's no cartels to target. People make it in their own homes, with ingredients they purchased legitimately.

I worry that there will be hotspots of krokodil use in America. Western Europe was pretty lucky. It's not that bad there. But addicts have more hope in recovery in Western Europe than they do in most of the United States, or in Russia, where it's a terrible problem.

I fear the lack of practical and humane assistance for poor addicts in the US will turn this into an epidemic in some places.

Mornin' SAM.
hat.gif
To top it off Heroin is making a reemergence. Heroin deaths here are up. Plus the LE's have been harping on how many younger kids are using it. Which starts out as snorting and for some leads to the worse. Hence that influence, and the concern it garners here.
 
I watched something on this awhile ago, and even heavy, destitute heroine addicts in Russia were basically saying "i'd rather go without, gather more money and get proper heroine".
Of course, if you are going to take addict level doses of opiates, heroin would be preferable to krokodile due to its flesh rotting effects. But we're talking about the least bad of two bad options. Heroin addicts look better than krokodile addicts, but they still don't look good.

I've taken recreational doses of hydrocodone and codeine...and I didn't become a depraved addict. What causes addiction is much more complex than mere availability of an addictive drug. To be frank, I would be curious to take some pharmeceutical grade desomorphine (NOT home cook crap). And I would certainly never inject any drug I was not prescribed to enhance its buzz/make its onset quicker. When you reach that point, you're definitely an addict, and the problems you have are clearly greater than merely a drug.
 
I can't feel sorry for someone who would willingly take this drug while knowing it's effects. Dumb as a stump is all I can say.
 
Some pretty wild lookin' pictures from a story in 2011

krokROT1.jpg


krokROT4.jpg


Krokodil: The drug that eats junkies
A home-made heroin substitute is having a horrific effect on thousands of Russia's drug addicts
By Shaun Walker
June 22, 2011
Krokodil: The flesh-eating drug that eats junkies - Europe - World - The Independent

The Living Dead: Why Thousands of Russian Addicts Are Rotting to Death
By Kristen Gwynne
June 24, 2011
The Living Dead: Why Thousands of Russian Addicts Are Rotting to Death | Alternet

OMG! That is nasty!
 
Mornin' SAM.
hat.gif
To top it off Heroin is making a reemergence. Heroin deaths here are up. Plus the LE's have been harping on how many younger kids are using it. Which starts out as snorting and for some leads to the worse. Hence that influence, and the concern it garners here.

Yup. I spent my teen years in a nice suburb around Minneapolis, and it's taken a couple of my old aquaintences. There was a huge smokable heroin outbreak here amongst young people, and that progressed into shooting up.

So these are people with no degrees, no job prospects, many of whom have even had their parents give up on them, living in squalor now. They're perfectly primed to pick up something like krokodil.
 
That article sucks, because it points a junkie right to how to make it. And that's where the problem will start. Junkies making it for themselves.

Its not the first time I've seen enough clues in a news article to point me to Google.

Instructions in the first search.

Do you really think a junkie is going to reference this article to learn about the drug?

#smh
 
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