NDEWS ORIGINAL CONTENT

NDEWS Hotspot Alerts October 6–12, 2022: Opioid, heroin, methamphetamine, and non-opioid 911 dispatches

NDEWS Hotspot Alerts is a dynamic notification system of biospatial.io that quantifies the degree to which observed 911 dispatch rates for drug-related events deviate from expected ranges of values. This week's report identifies counties with above-expected drug-related 911 dispatches over the past week. View the full report here.

Updated alert from the NDEWS Web Monitoring Team: Online mentions of fluorexetamine

What was found? A new peak in total Subreddit mentions for fluorexetamine appeared in September 2022. Since that peak, a record 97 unique Subreddit commenters have mentioned the drug for the first time. The trend of fluorexetamine mentions began in Summer/Fall 2021 and has grown from dozens to hundreds of mentions per month in 2022.

What is Fluorexetamine? Fluorexetamine (FXE) is a dissociative NPS of the arylcyclohexylamine family.

How is Fluorexetamine being discussed? Fluorexetamine is abbreviated as FXE on Reddit. FXE is frequently co-mentioned with ketamine. Commenters report experiencing mania when taking drugs labeled as FXE.

Drug Terms: Fluorexetamine, FXE.

RECENTLY PUBLISHED

Notes from the field: E-cigarette use among middle and high school students — US, 2022

A report recently published in MMWR analyzed e-cigarette use among middle and high school students in the US from January to May, 2022, using a web-based survey. In 2022, 14.1% of high school students and 3.3% of middle school students reported current e-cigarette use. Among current e-cigarette users, the types of devices most often used were disposables, prefilled or refillable pods or cartridges, and tanks or mod systems. Read the full report here.

Implementation and uptake of the Massachusetts Drug Supply Data Stream: A statewide public health-public safety partnership drug checking program

A study recently published in the Journal of Public Health Management & Practice describes the Massachusetts Drug Supply Data Steam, a statewide drug checking program, launched in 2020 which tests remnant drug packaging and paraphernalia with residue. For 2020, a total of 427 samples were tested, 47.1% of which were positive for fentanyl. By early 2021, the program identified a shift in cocaine purity alerted communities of a new toxic fentanyl analog and a synthetic cannabinoid contaminant and confirmed an increase of xylazine in Massachusetts. Read the full study here.

NFLIS Annual Drug Report: 2021

Earlier this week, the DEA's National Forensic Laboratory Information System (NFLIS) published their 2021 Annual Drug Report, which presents the results of drug cases submitted to State and local laboratories from January 1, 2021, through December 31, 2021. Read the full report here. 

IN THE NEWS

The Warehouse Project aims to make dancefloors safer with new in-app welfare features

The Warehouse Project, a series of club nights organized from September through New Year's Day, in Manchester, England, has updated their mobile app to include new features aimed at keeping clubbers safe. The new app includes drug safety, which comes directly from the club’s own on-site drug testing service and testing reports and are sent through push notifications. Read the full article here.

45th Expert Committee on Drug Dependence documents

This week, the WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence is meeting in Geneva. Nine substances have never been formally reviewed by WHO and are not currently under international control. The Expert Committee will consider whether there is justification for scheduling of the substance in the 1961 or 1971 Conventions. The nine substances are listed here, along with the documents.

Join Virtual HealthStreet

Virtual HealthStreet is an online community of people who will periodically be asked to respond to confidential surveys on their lived experiences with drugs and information on new and emerging drugs. People with lived experience can help us garner a better understanding of emerging drug trends across the US and disseminate early warnings in near real time. Anyone over the age of 18 with lived experience with the use of drugs can participate. Please use the QR code above to sign up. To share this information with your network click here.

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