Taipei, June 26 (CNA) The use of an emerging drug sold under the deceptive name of "bath salts" has been on the rise in Taiwan, with its effects linked to unconsciousness and even death, a toxicologist said Tuesday.

"Bath salts," a name used to disguise the illegal substance as a benign household product, is made of three major chemicals-- Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), methylone, and mephedrone, said Yang Chen-chang, a toxicologist at Taipei Veterans General Hospital.

The drug has been in the news recently in the United States since a bizarre incident in which Rudy Eugene, 31, was fatally shot by Miami police after he was found chewing another man's face.

Eugene, dubbed the "cannibal man," is believed to have been high on the "bath salts" drug at the time.

Yang said these types of new drugs are frequently mixed with different substances by dealers, who often give the drugs trendy names as a way to mislead users into thinking that the substance is not illegal.

Several incidents have indicated that Taiwan is now no more than one or two years behind other countries in terms of drug abuse, the toxicologist said.

Methylone, one of the substances in the "bath salts" drug, was first found to be illegally used in the Netherlands in 2004 and has now become a street drug in Taiwan, Yang said.

Three victims of sexual assault sent to the Taipei Veterans General Hospital were found to have traces of methylone in their systems, Yang said.

In addition, a 30-year-old AIDS patient who was found unconscious and was taken to the hospital was diagnosed as having taken methylone, Yang said.

In another incident, a middle-aged man was rushed to the hospital's emergency room after developing numbness in the limbs and muscle stiffness.

A urine test showed that the man had taken MDPV, one of the three ingredients of "bath salts", Yang said.

His case was the first confirmed use of the the drug in Taiwan since it appeared in the country in Sept. 2011, said Tsai Wen-ying, a section chief at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the Department of Health.

More and more MDPV abuse cases have been recorded in the past two to three years, with many users taking the drug along with several other illegal substances, Tsai said.

MDPV is not listed as a controlled drug in Taiwan but the other two major ingredients of "bath salts" are listed as class three regulated substances.

Mephedrone was listed in 2009 and methylone in April this year, according to the FDA website.

(By Chen Ching-fang and Ann Chen)

================================================================

喪屍「浴鹽」侵台灣　男子肌肉僵硬送醫

美國發生駭人聽聞的啃食人臉案件，彷彿活人喪屍，畫面震驚全世界，正當罪魁禍首指向一種俗稱「浴鹽」的新型毒品時，無獨有偶，台北榮總日前就收治一名因為四肢麻木、肌肉僵硬而掛急診的中年男子，一問之下，才知他就醫前3小時曾吸食不知名的白色粉末，經尿液檢驗，赫然發現「浴鹽」主成分之一的MDPV。

這一名50歲的男子，是因為呼吸困難、四肢麻木及肌肉僵硬急診就醫，台北榮民總醫院內科臨床毒物科主治醫師楊振昌說，當時男子自訴於就醫前3個多小時曾使用不明的白色粉末及飲酒，一驗尿液，居然發現「浴鹽」的蹤跡。

這也是繼2011年9月國內首次發現MDPV藥物後，首度在人體身上檢出MDPV，而俗稱「浴鹽（bath salts）」的新興毒品，近2、3年在國外濫用快速增加，主成分為MDPV、Ｍethylone及Ｍephedrone。

楊振昌表示，原來這名男子是吸毒老手，濫用「搖頭丸」及「K他命」已有5年之久，這一次原本是抱著「嚐鮮」的心態，接受了同道毒友提供的新鮮貨，連成分是什麼都還不知道，沒想到，這麼一吸就出現嚴重症狀；且尿液中除了MDPV之外，還有甲基安非他命、安非他命、K他命、尼古代等多種代謝物，有毒品混用情形。

事實上，「浴鹽」不但已入侵台灣，還有快速增加的趨勢，榮總在接受檢警委託的檢驗案件當中，迄今就至少在3件的性侵案當中，檢出「浴鹽」的主要成分，叫楊振昌憂心忡忡。

楊振昌說，台灣新興毒品的速度已經逐漸跟上國外腳步，時差僅有1至2年，就以「浴鹽」為例，不但可能引發四肢麻木、肌肉僵硬等症狀，在國外，更屢傳妄想症，有人因此拿槍瘋狂掃射、摔小孩下樓、開車撞車甚至自殘，在精神錯亂的情況下攻擊無辜民眾導致重傷。

衛生署食品藥物管理局管制藥品組組長蔡文瑛強調，衛生署已經決定將MDPV列為第二級管制藥品，將在2個月內完成法定程序，也呼籲青少年千萬不要因為新穎的名字、新潮的造型而輕易嚐試，誤觸毒網；不過，根據衛生署的統計，在通報管制藥品濫用案件中，仍以K他命為害最大，從91年的僅23件，到100年的1017件，成長高達44倍，更是19歲以下年齡層濫用藥物的第一名。

======================================================================================

 

CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Tuesday, Jun. 5, 2012 8:00PM EDT

The federal government said Tuesday it intends to put a street drug known as "bath salts" under the same regulations as cocaine and heroin.

Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq said the government will place the key ingredient in the drug, MDPV, under Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act. The move will make possessing, trafficking, importing and exporting, or manufacturing the drug a criminal offence.

"This action shows our government's commitment to protecting the health and safety of Canadians from this dangerous substance," Aglukkaq told reporters.

"This action helps give law enforcement the tools they need to keep our streets safe from this new and emerging drug that ruins lives and causes havoc in communities across the country."

MDPV, or methylenedioxypyrovalerone, is a synthetic amphetamine that delivers a powerful high. It is also known to cause dangerous side effects, such as violent hallucinations, fear and can lead to a feeling of paranoia.

The drug has earned the nickname "bath salts" because the finished product resembles the scented bath products found in many Canadian homes.

The drug was implicated in a grisly attack in Miami on May 26, when one man chewed the flesh off another man's face on a highway as horrified motorists looked on. Police were unable to subdue the attacker, 31-year-old Rudy Eugene, and shot him dead.

Officers have speculated that Eugene, whose family described him as a mild-mannered individual who rarely drank or did drugs, may have taken MDPV.

In the wake of that incident, U.S. officials moved to regulate MDPV, "and now Canadian authorities are doing the same thing," reported CTV News Channel's Mercedes Stephenson.

Fredericton Police Chief Barry MacKnight said MDPV is difficult for police to track in Canada because it is legal. However, its presence is growing in Canada, particularly in the Atlantic provinces, as well as in Ontario and in the West.

"This drug, along with the behaviours associated to those who have been using the bath salts, are a serious concern to the police and many others in our communities," said MacKnight, who chairs the drug-abuse committee of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

"This is sending a strong message to Canadians and especially young Canadians, that this drug is harmful, while also allowing enforcement agencies to deal with those who victimize some of the most vulnerable in our communities -- the young and those suffering from addiction -- by selling this drug."

The proposed changes are first subject to a 30-day comment period, then are sent on to the Treasury Board as a series of new regulations. The Treasury Board would then approve the changes and publish them in the Canada Gazette, likely in the fall.

While that process can take between one and two years, the government intends to fast-track the process over concerns about the drug's effects.

"We owe it to our children and our communities to remove these serious health threats as quickly as we possibly can," Aglukkaq said.

With files from The Canadian Press

Read more: http://www.ctvnews.ca/feds-seek-to-ban-bath-salts-drug-after-u-s-incident-1.835568#ixzz1yw9rt5gT