title: Component analysis of Iranian crack; a newly abused narcotic substance in iran.
abstract: Iranian crack is a new form of narcotic substance that has found widespread prevalence in Iran in the past years. Crack only nominally resembles crack cocaine as it is widely different in its clinical signs. Thus the present study aims to quantify the chemical combination of this drug. The samples included 18 specimen of Crack collected from different zones of Tehran, Iran. All specimens were in the form of inodorous cream solid powdery substance. TLC and HPLC methods were used to perform semi-quantitative and quantitative analysis of the components, respectively. The TLC analysis showed no cocaine compound in the specimens while they all revealed to contain heroin, codeine, morphine and caffeine. All but two specimens contained thebaine. None of the specimens contained amphetamine, benzodiazepines, tricyclic antidepressants, aspirin, barbiturates, tramadol and buprenorphine. Acetaminophen was found in four specimens. HPLC revealed heroin to be the foundation substance in all specimens and most of them contained a significant amount of acetylcodeine. The present analysis of the chemical combination of Crack showed that this substance is a heroin-based narcotic which is basically different from the cocaine-based crack used in Western countries. Studies like the present one at different time points, especially when abnormal clinical signs are detected, can reveal the chemical combination of the target substance and contribute to the clinical management of its acute or chronic poisoning.
authors.affiliation: Iranian Research Center for Substance Abuse and Dependence, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Science, Tehran, Iran .
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Farhoudian
authors.affiliation: IRSA Center for Psychology and Addiction Study, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mandana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sadeghi
authors.affiliation: Iranian Research Center for Substance Abuse and Dependence, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Science, Tehran, Iran .
authors.forename: Hamid Reza
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Khoddami Vishteh
authors.affiliation: Non-Communicable Diseases Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Population Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran , ; Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinical Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran .
authors.forename: Babak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Moazen
authors.affiliation: Bahar Laboratory of Toxicology, Tehran, Iran. Iranian Research Center for HIV/AIDS, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Monir
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fekri
authors.affiliation: Bahar Laboratory of Toxicology, Tehran, Iran. Iranian Research Center for HIV/AIDS, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Afarin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rahimi Movaghar
keywords: Crack; Crack cocaine; HPLC; Heroin; Iranian crack; Substance use; TLC
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