The National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) has released the results of a month-long investigation into the chemical makeup of a suspected narcotic substance whose users were captured in a video at the Coast exhibiting symptoms of drowsiness and confusion as well as 'zombie-like' stances.
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In a message to newsrooms, NACADA Acting CEO Prof. John Muteti stated that 20 samples of the unknown drug, in varied forms, were collected throughout three coastal counties and subjected to forensic investigation.
The examinations found that the narcotics were heroin mixed with various prescription medications and animal tranquilizers rather than Fentanyl.
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"The zombie-like symptoms among drug users can be attributed to either one or a combination of the following factors; high dosage of heroin and a combination of heroin with high dosage of prescription drugs especially Diazepam and Amitriptyline," said Muteti.
"The symptoms are also attributed to a combination of methadone with heroin, high dosage of prescription drugs and other substances, and mono use or combination of heroin and Xylazine, which is a veterinary animal tranquilizer," he added.
The presence of Xylazine in the samples gathered, according to Muteti, raises concerns about a potential public health disaster in the treatment of the drug's overdose cases, as the life-saving medicine Naloxone does not successfully combat its overdose effects.
"The scientific evidence from our mission evidently shows that with the emerging evidence of non-medical use of veterinary drugs, there is urgent need to institute measures to regulate and control the diversion of such drugs into the illegal market," he said.
"This includes a strong consideration for scheduling Xylazine and other veterinary drugs prone to abuse to avert such instances."
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