A FLESH-eating zombie narcotic used for knocking out animals is the latest threat facing Scotland’s drug users, experts have warned.
Powerful tranquiliser xylazine has been found in the nation’s illegal drugs market after having wreaked havoc among addicts in North America.
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It’s now feared the drug is about to explode in Scotland with heroin, cocaine and even vape users at risk of consuming the dangerous vet medicine.
Boffins have also raised the alarm over traces found in counterfeit codeine, diazepam tablets and THC or cannabis vapes.
The drug – known as ‘tranq’ or ‘tranq dope’ when cut with heroin and fentanyl – causes dangerously low breathing and heart rate.
And if injected directly into the user’s bloodstream it can cause gaping skin ulcers.
Dr Caroline Copeland, from King’s College London, said: “Scotland has the worst drug death rate in the UK and the rest of Europe.
“Opiates and opioids, including heroin, was implicated in more than eight out of ten drug-related deaths in 2022.
“We know that xylazine is being mixed in with other drugs, such as heroin, to bulk up supply, but drug takers will have no idea.
“Our analysis showed there were two deaths from Scotland and one submitted sample that had xylazine detected, so the drug is definitely there.
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“The data here is likely representative of a wider trend and the true numbers are probably much higher.”
Xylazine is a non-opioid sedative, painkiller and muscle relaxant used in veterinary medicine as a tranquiliser for animals.
Researchers from the National Programme on Substance Abuse Deaths at King’s College London warn the wider population of people who use drugs beyond heroin users will be exposed to xylazine’s horrific side effects.
Their findings, published today in Addiction, come after the death of a 43-year-old man from Solihull, West Midlands, in May 2022.
This is the first death outside North America and the first in the UK to be linked to xylazine use.
Researchers contacted all toxicology laboratories in the UK to collate evidence of xylazine detections in biological samples.
They found the presence of the drug in sixteen people, 11 of whom were fatal. Eleven samples dated from the summer of 2023.
Senior author Dr Copeland added: “Cheap xylazine test strips should be made available, healthcare providers need to be aware of the signs that chronic skin ulcers are due to xylazine use, and pathologists and coroners should specifically request toxicology testing for xylazine in relevant cases to understand the true prevalence of the drug.”
We told in December how crimebusters are battling to stop a deadly wave of manufactured ‘Frankenstein’ opioids swamping Scotland.
The National Crime Agency fear the so-called nitazenes could be heading north of the border after causing a surge in drug-related fatalities elsewhere in the UK.
Scottish Conservative MSP for the Lothian region Sue Webber said: “On the SNP’s watch drug deaths have become Scotland’s national shame and successive SNP First Ministers have totally failed to get a grip of this crisis.
“The emergence of Xylazine in Scotland’s illicit drug market is deeply concerning and sadly many people who suffer from addiction will have no idea the risk that this poses to them.”
Scottish Labour’s Jackie Baillie added: “The news that another dangerous drug is being reported demands action.
“We need to see this SNP government seriously getting to grips with the lack of rehab beds available and we need to see proper co-ordination with charity groups and Police Scotland.”
The Scottish Lib Dem’s Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “The Scottish Government need to be alive to new threats entering Scotland’s drug market.
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“I have pressed the First Minister over why his budget delivers a real-terms cut to drugs services and I have not been satisfied with the answer.
“We already have the worst drug deaths in all of Europe. The government must get on the front foot with public information, detection and treatment to meet this new threat.”
