1985 saw the first mention of ecstasy in the UK press. It came in the November edition of a style magazine called The Face. The magazine dubbed ecstasy as ‘the yuppie way of knowledge’, showing that back then, the drug…
Tag Archive for deaths
Druglink news item 1998 – Rapid opiate detox out for the count
Following last year’s inquest into the death of Brendan Woolhead while undergoing rapid opiate detoxification, a public debate and a number of recent cases have called into question the basis of such detoxification programmes Rapid opiate detox out for the…
Druglink article 1997 – Message on a bottle by Richard Ives
It has killed five times more people in the last decade than cocaine, ecstasy and speed put together, but solvent misuse has always been the ugly sister of the drug field. That could change as slogans like Solvent Abuse Can…
Druglink factsheet 1996 – Drug deaths
A simplified overview of what we know about deaths from drug use and how these compare to deaths caused by alcohol and tobacco. Drug deaths (PDF)
Druglink article 1996 – Methadone works by Tom Carnwath
In the first Druglink of 1996, an article claimed that methadone had a death rate four times that of heroin. If this is true, the drug field’s response to heroin addiction urgently needs to be reconsidered. However, a brief analysis…
Druglink article 1996 – Live and let die – Is methadone more likely to kill you than heroin? by Russell Newcombe
This article focuses on evidence about opiate-related deaths. More specifically, it examines the statistics for methadone related deaths and compares them with those for heroin. The question posed is, what are the relative mortality risks of using methadone compared to…
Druglink article 1994 – Death in the family by Steve Todd and Lynda Lake
A death within a close-knit client group presents challenges and opportunities for the project. Death in the family (PDF)
Druglink article 1993 – In defence of ecstasy by Nicholas Saunders
After personal experience of MDMA with lasting positive effects the author studied the scientific literature and concluded that evidence of brain damage was unreliable. Estimates of the death rate per use episode in Britain suggest ecstasy use is a relatively…
Druglink article 1992 – ‘Heatstroke’ cause of ecstasy deaths
Surprise evidence of liver damage after repeated use Heatstroke’ cause of ecstasy deaths (PDF)
Druglink article 1992 – Drug user deaths up tenfold in Glasgow
‘Virtual unavailability’ of methadone blamed for the deaths in Scotland. Drug user deaths up tenfold in Glasgow (PDF)