The National Authority for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drug Abuse has raised concern that some users are injecting animal tranquillizers as an alternative to heroin. Nacada in a statement on Friday said in their two-week fact-finding mission to the Coast region, it was discovered that other drug users were injecting with animal tranquilizers to enhance and prolong heroin potency. During the mission, 20 samples in various forms were collected in three counties of the Coast region and handed over to the Government Chemist for analysis and identification. It was established that users were injecting with a combination of heroin and Xylazine, which is a veterinary animal tranquillizer. “This discovery of Xylazine presents a potential public health crisis in the management of drug overdose cases because the life-saving drug Naloxone does not respond to its overdose,” Nacada acting CEO John Muteti said.

Source: The Star September 08, 2023 13:57 UTC