Methcathinone

(Indiana Prevention Resource Center; by William J. Bailey)

The scenario seems right out of some science fiction nightmare. A dangerous addictive drug that is cheap and easy to manufacture appears out of nowhere and creates a potential drug crisis. The drug is concocted from a "witches brew" of battery acid, Drano, and over-the-counter asthma medication, and can be manufactured in home kitchens.

Unfortunately, it isn't science fiction. It isn't fiction. It is Indiana's most recent drug threat -- methcathinone. Since 1991 or 1992, this new drug has emerged as a cheap substitute for methamphetamine. Since it is so new, all of the risks have not yet been assessed. But lack of information about risks has not stopped its use in Indiana.

Slang Terms Associated with Methcathinone

Cat
Goob
Jeff
Speed
Bathtub speed
Mulka
Gagers, gaggers
The C
Wild cat
Wonder star
Cadillac express
Ephedrone

Ingredients Used in Methcathinone Synthesis

The ingredients used in various recipes for homemade methcathinone include:

• ephedrine or pseudoephedrine (found in some over-the-counter asthma and cold medications)
• acetone (explosive paint solvent)
• muriatic acid (used in sandblasting and cleaning mortar off bricks)
• sulfuric acid (usually purchased from auto supply stores as battery acid)
• lye (usually in the form of a crystal drain cleaner such as Drano)
• sodium dichromate or potassium dichromate
• sodium hydroxide
• toulene (explosive paint thinner)

History of Methcathinone

Methcathinone is a derivative of a naturally-occurring stimulant drug, cathinone, which is found in the "khat" plant, Cathula edulis, which is native to the horn of Africa and southern Arabian peninsula. It was first synthesized in Germany in 1928, and used in the Soviet Union as an antidepressant during the 1930's and 1940's. Abuse of methcathinone, also known as "ephedrone," "Jeff," or "Mulka," has been reported in the Soviet Union since the late 1960's.

In the mid-1950's, American pharmaceutical manufacturer Parke Davis & Company conducted preliminary studies on methcathinone to determine if it had any medicinal potential. Although Parke Davis soon abandoned its methcathinone research, after determining that there were unacceptable safety risks and substantial side effects, their studies revealed that it had physiologic effects similar to amphetamine. Methcathinone reemerged in this country in 1989, when a University of Michigan student who was interning at Parke Davis stumbled across and stole samples of the drug and documentation of the manufacturing process. In 1990, associates of that student began manufacturing and selling the drug in clandestine laboratories in northern Michigan. Its use became popular in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in 1990 and 1991, and quickly spread statewide. As of 1995, methcathinone laboratories have been discovered in ten states, from Colorado through the Midwest. It has quickly become one of the biggest challenges faced by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Methcathinone was classified as a schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act on May 1, 1992, under the emergency scheduling procedure. The classification was made permanent effective October 15, 1993.

Effects of Methcathinone Intoxication

The most common means of taking methcathinone is snorting (nasal insufflation). Other routes of administration include taking it by mouth (oral ingestion) mixed in a liquid such as coffee or soft drinks, intravenous injection, and smoking it either in a crack pipe or added to tobacco or marijuana cigarettes. Methcathinone is often used in binges lasting from two to six days, during which methcathinone is used repeatedly.

Effects of short term intoxication are similar to those produced by crack cocaine or methamphetamine: stimulation of heart rate and respiration; feeling of euphoria; loss of appetite; increased alertness; pupils may be dilated; body temperature may be slightly elevated. Acute intoxication at higher doses may also result in: insomnia, tremors and muscle twitching, fever, headaches, convulsions, irregular heart rate and respirations, anxiety, restlessness, paranoia, and hallucinations and delusions.

Problems Associated with Methcathinone

Use While research on the long-term effects of methcathinone use is just beginning in the United States, anecdotal reports from users in treatment in this country, and from published research in Russia, paint a similar picture. limited.

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