Waste water points to American drug addiction during pandemic

(AIrstistic representation / My own/Dalle2)

A team of researchers from the University of Massachusetts Lowell analyzed sewage and found out that residents of the university campus began to use more opioids and psychostimulants during the covid pandemic.

The scientists led by Sheree Pagsuyoin noted that the results reflect a general alarming trend in the region.

The metabolites of substances that people consume are excreted in urine and feces, entering the sewer.

With the development of highly accurate chemical analysis methods such as chromatography with mass spectrometry, a new discipline emerged called wastewater epidemiology (WBE).

The method obtains information about the health and lifestyle of the population by analyzing substances and biomarkers in the contents of sewers and wastewater treatment plants.

THE STUDY
Pagsuyoin’s team collected samples twice a month from September 2018 to August 2020 at a water treatment plant on a small university campus in rural New England.

Using mass spectrometry, the researchers determined the content in samples of the ten most socially significant opioids and psychostimulants:

morphine
codeine
hydrocodone
methadone
fentanyl
cocaine
amphetamine
methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, MDMA)
methylenedioxy-N-ethylamphetamine (MDEA)

The analysis showed that in the early months of the pandemic, the largest increase in consumption was MDMA (by 286%).

Overall, cocaine, morphine, and amphetamine accounted for the most per capita; drug use increased during the spring term.

Also, fentanyl use was higher than in all other rural and university communities studied so far.

The team noted that the findings reflect a region-wide problem with opioid overdoses and rising prescriptions for stimulants.

She recalled that, according to the CDC, New England is considered one of the "hot spots" of the current US opioid crisis.

To combat this phenomenon, a dedicated Regional Opioid Legal Initiative (NE-RJOI) was launched.

Sources:

Wanna save your links for later?
Try this new tool: https://bit.ly/3Wb8Mwe

#science #drugs #sewage #opioids #steemexclusive #news #nftmc