Pubdate: Thu, 09 Aug 2001 Source: Kitchener-Waterloo Record (CN ON) Copyright: 2001 Kitchener-Waterloo Record Contact: http://www.therecord.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/225 Author: Harvey Taylor METHADONE A DEADLY DIVERSION IN REGIOn There's an insidious predator called methadone in town. Harmless, even helpful, to hardened heroin addicts, it can be deadly for young folks looking to party. Three Kitchener residents, aged 13, 15 and 22, have died in the last two months after taking street drugs. Waterloo regional police are waiting for toxicology reports before confirming the drug or drugs to blame for the deaths. But officials can't afford to wait for paperwork to warn kids about the risk they run if they think methadone is a relatively harmless high. Both police and health professionals are concerned about what appears to be a booming black market in illegal methadone available to thrill seekers. When used properly, under a doctor's supervision, the drug helps addicts deal with the overwhelming craving that is the hallmark of heroin. They don't get a high from the stuff, but it apparently subdues the desire enough to allow addicts to pursue a more normal lifestyle. In an ideal circumstance, a person on methadone can hold down a job instead of breaking into homes to feed the monkey on his back. Doctors at methadone clinics -- there are two in the region -- write prescriptions for the drug and patients get them filled at pharmacies. All well and good. But problems ensue if patients decide to sell their methadone instead of taking it. Dr. Jeff Daiter told The Record methadone sells for a dollar a milligram on the street, meaning an addict with a prescription to carry home six 100-milligram doses is sitting on a tidy little bundle of cash if he chooses to sell some. The good doctor -- who deserves credit for working in a tough field --does his best to make sure the methadone he prescribes doesn't end up on the street. But if it does and it is taken by a curious fun-seeker, he says a 50-milligram dose could be deadly. Even less might kill if the methadone is washed down with alcohol. Mary Wilhelm, head of the detox unit at Grand River Hospital in Kitchener, is also worried about the availability of illegal methadone. In an interview last week, she had this to say: "Your average Joe kid has never had it in (doses prescribed to heroin addicts) and it just shuts down their respiratory system and kills them." OK, I'm scared. Is enough being done to make sure heroin addicts aren't selling their methadone to kids? Doesn't look like it, but let's worry about placing blame later. Right now public health officials, educators and parents need to do whatever they can to get the message out. Methadone is a deadly diversion. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens