Fentanyl is used in Mexico's northern border: current challenges for drug health policies

Abstract

Background and Aims Results from a recent study among 750 heroin users in three Mexico's northern border cities revealed an increase in white powder availability (also known as China white) and preference for this product among heroin users, as well as a general perception of increased overdose cases among this population. Here, we questioned whether those findings reflect an increased presence of heroin laced with fentanyl, which is associated with greater risks of overdose but that, until now, has not been described in Mexico. Design We tested fentanyl using highly sensitive test strips in syringe plungers, metal cookers and drug wrappings associated with heroin use. Setting Three injection sites in Tijuana, Baja California, México. Participants Eighty‐nine heroin users who interchanged paraphernalia for new syringes. Measurements We tested 59 residues of ‘pure’ white powder. The rest were white powder with black tar (n = 5) or white powder with crystal meth (n = 9), black tar with crystal meth (n = 1), black tar only (n = 13) and crystal meth only (n = 2). Findings Users believed that they consumed either white powder heroin, white powder heroin with crystal meth, white powder with black tar heroin or black tar heroin only. Analyses revealed that 93% (n = 55) of the ‘pure’ white powder samples had fentanyl. All (n = 9) the white powder samples mixed with crystal meth and 40% (n = 2) of the white powder with black tar were also laced with fentanyl. Conclusions In a sample of 89 heroin users in Mexico, most white powder heroin users were unknowingly exposed to fentanyl, with fentanyl detected in 93% of white powder samples.

Sociodemographic and geographic disparities in excess fatal drug overdoses during the COVID-19 pandemic in California: A population-based study

“…The stark spatial patterning of excess drug overdoses, following a south-to-north pattern that is notably absent evident in all excess mortality from all causes, might be attributable to differences in drug supply, 22 which is plausible given that research studies have found an increased presence of heroin laced with fentanyl along the Mexico-California border. 23 A better understanding of these geographic patterns may inform better public health resource allocation and more targeted program implementation.…”

Construcción de una escala de actividades de tiempo libre en padres de familia mexicanos

“…En las actividades de tiempo libre a nivel social, cuya característica es la interacción con el otro, aparecen la categoría Interacción (8), la cual involucra fiestas o reuniones, familiares o en general; y la categoría Familia extensa (11), que implica convivencia y cuidado de la familia, factores que destacan el papel de la familia en la cultura mexicana (Fleiz, Villatoro, Rivera, Medina-Mora, & Fresán, 1995). Las actividades de tiempo libre favorecen la interacción social (Rodríguez-Suárez & Agulló-Tomás, 2002), sin embargo, las categorías 8 y 11 remiten en su mayoría a la familia extensa, en ambos factores las actividades con menores cargas factoriales son las que remiten a interacción social más allá de la familia: ir a una fiesta y cuidar a alguien.…”

Behavior change after fentanyl testing at a safe consumption space for women in Northern Mexico: A pilot study

“…Fentanyl has been the predominant opioid available in the illicit drug market in areas like the Northeast, Ohio, and Appalachia ( Peters et al, 2020 ); whereas in the West, fentanyl prevalence is still low although increasing ( Peters et al, 2020 ; Shover et al, 2020 ). Less is known about the epidemiology of fentanyl use and related deaths in Mexico, but pockets of incipient fentanyl use have been reported along the US-Mexico border primarily in the cities of Tijuana and Mexicali ( Fleiz et al, 2020 ; Fleiz-Bautista C, 2019 ). However, waste water analysis detected fentanyl at low levels in 13 of 15 Mexican cities where testing was performed ( Cruz-Cruz et al, 2021 ).…”