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Controls on essential/precursor chemicals from commercial companies have been associated with many large downturns in illicit drug markets and attendant problems. My colleagues and I brought this to light in the studies that are the subject of Giommoni's review. McKetin et al. in an earlier review considered several of our studies on chemical controls for methamphetamine, all centered in North America. Giommoni discusses not only those studies but also our later work on chemical controls for cocaine and heroin. This later work evaluates US essential/precursor chemical policies targeting illicit drug producers outside of North America, and it examines impacts on illicit drug availability and use (the studies reviewed by McKetin et al. predominantly focused on outcomes such as drug-related hospitalizations, arrests, and treatment). Giommoni's review is a new resource that will help make the varied topics in essential/precursor chemical control research more accessible to many readers. After noting this, I discuss some common methodological misconceptions about our studies. For example, our studies generally used multi-replication interrupted time series analysis, a research design among the most powerful of all quasi-experimental designs. Authors, however, typically discuss the studies as if they used single-intervention interrupted time series analysis, a less powerful design. Multi-replication and single-intervention interrupted time series analyses also differ regarding likely confounders; awareness of this is critical to accurately assessing our findings and critiquing alternative explanations. Finally, I note that commercial chemical companies function as the silent, albeit usually unwitting, partners in the large-scale production of several illicit drugs, including fentanyl. And many governments are implementing essential/precursor chemical controls to help stymie this partnership. But they are doing so largely without evaluation and study-a poor policy practice. To remedy this, I suggest establishing multi-disciplinary applied research teams to help assess, guide and improve essential/precursor chemical control efforts., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The author declares that he has no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

In Japan, a pharmacy or drug store license is required for selling pharmaceutical products. However, civilians without a pharmacy or drug store license are displaying pharmaceutical products for sale on a flea market application, which is illegal dealing. This study discussed the modality for implementing countermeasures for the illicit selling of pharmaceutical products. We extracted pharmaceutical products displayed for sale on three flea market applications (Mercari, Rakuma, Fril) on one day. One hundred and eighty-one pharmaceutical products were displayed (49 on Mercari, 86 on Rakuma, and 46 on Fril). There were 6.1% (11/181) domestically prescribed drugs, 69.1% (125/181) domestic OTC drugs, 23.8% (43/181) foreign-made prescribed drugs, and 1.1% (2/181) foreign-made OTC drugs. The seller could display the product for sale without confirming whether it is prohibited. We alerted the service providers of this illicit selling at flea markets at three different instances. The pharmaceutical product displays were deleted by the service providers at a rate of 55.1% (27/49) for Mercari and 51.2% (44/86) for Rakuma. The average number of drugs that were displayed for sale by each seller was 1.4 and the average number of total products that were displayed for sale by each seller was 100. The seller could have unintentionally displayed the pharmaceutical products for sale, without the knowledge that it is illegal. The service providers of flea market applications should create mechanisms to alert the sellers that displaying pharmaceutical products for sale is an illicit act and regulate these violations.

The proliferation of new psychoactive substances (NPS) has been a global trend in drug abuse and its regulation has been a worldwide concern. There is no doubt that it is necessary to share information related to these emerging substances between countries and continents for the effective regulation of NPS. With efforts for the efficient regulation of NPS, many studies and information have been published for the prevalence of NPS in the United States and other countries in Europe and Oceania. However, there is lack of information available for the prevalence of NPS in Asian and African countries. Therefore, this research was focused on the investigation of legal status of certain NPS in Northeast Asian countries, including China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, in order to provide information on the prevalence and trend of emerging NPS in these countries. The results showed that a total of 940 NPS was reported in 4 Northeast Asian countries from 2007 to 2015. Among 940 NPS, 882 NPS are legally restricted in at least one country (94%) and 96 substances were not currently under control (6%) in these countries. The number of controlled NPS that are currently controlled in all 4 countries was only 25 (or 28%) out of 882 NPS. Each substance was categorized in 9 groups according to the classification proposed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). In Northeast Asia, the most commonly controlled NPS were synthetic cannabinoids, synthetic cathinones, and phenethylamines. It was found that Japan is the most proactive country in terms of the NPS regulation with 41% of the total number of controlled NPS in Northeast Asia, followed by South Korea (21%), China (28%), Taiwan (10%). Comparing the number of NPS newly regulated in each country every year, NPS has been broadly scheduled in 2011 and the number of scheduled NPS has dramatically increased from 2013 to 2015. It was shown that Northeast Asia is also in danger of these emerging NPS and the effective regulation across countries is important for the prevention of NPS. Also, this study will bring attention to local law enforcement in the construction of local drug crime prevention network sharing information for these controlled substances., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In recent years, many analogs of narcotics have been widely distributed as easily available psychotropic substances and have become a serious problem in Japan. To counter the spread of these non-controlled substances, the Pharmaceutical Affairs Law in Japan was amended in 2006 to establish a new category; Designated Substances in order to more strictly control these substances. In April 2007, 31 compounds and 1 plant were first controlled as Designated Substances. Before 2007, the major compounds distributed in the Japanese illegal drug market were tryptamines, phenethylamines and piperazines. Alkyl nitrites, such as isobutyl nitrite and isopentyl nitrite, were also widely distributed. After they were listed as Narcotics or Designated Substances in 2007, these compounds, especially the tryptamines, quickly disappeared from the market. In their place, cathinone derivatives have been widely distributed, as well as different phenethylamines and piperazines. Additionally, in recent years, new herbal products containing synthetic cannabinoids have appeared globally. As at July 2012, 78 substances (including 1 plant; Salvia divinorum) were listed in the category of Designated Substances. They were 13 tryptamines, 17 phenethylamines, 11 cathinones, 4 piperazines, 23 synthetic cannabinoids, 6 alkyl nitrites, 3 other compounds and 1 plant. In this review, we show our survey of the spread of new designer drugs in Japan, focusing especially on synthetic cannabinoids and cathinone derivatives. Also, the prevalence and legal status of these substances in other countries will be presented.

Questions of existence of the "China Route" for drug smuggling and trafficking have been important in the literature. The profile of the offenders, particularly whether they are primarily members of traditional criminal organization, is a hotly debated issue. Much qualitative evidence has been collected and it provides important insights into these questions. However, little quantitative data has ever been collected and analyzed to provide a broader picture of these issues. The present study involves the systematical collection of data from court sentencing files from seven high courts whose jurisdictions cover the China Route. The findings provide valuable information that sheds light on the debated questions. Some evidence consistent with the China Route arguments is found. No evidence supports the idea that traditional organized criminal syndicates are behind most offenses. Logistic regression results reveal interesting associations between offender characteristics and types of offenses.

Issues: Illicit drugs are never far from the media gaze and although identified almost a decade ago as 'a new battleground' for the alcohol and other drug (AOD) field there has been limited research examining the role of the news media and its effects on audiences and policy., Approach: This paper draws together media theories from communication literature to examine media functions. We illustrate how each function is relevant for media and drugs research by drawing upon the existing literature examining Australian media coverage during the late 1990s of escalating heroin-related problems and proposed solutions., Key Findings: Media can influence audiences in four key ways: by setting the agenda and defining public interest; framing issues through selection and salience; indirectly shaping individual and community attitudes towards risk; and feeding into political debate and decision making. Each has relevance for the AOD field. For example, media coverage of the escalating heroin-related problems in Australia played a strong role in generating interest in heroin overdoses, framing public discourse in terms of a health and/or criminal issue and affecting political decisions. Implications AND CONCLUSION: Media coverage in relation to illicit drugs can have multifarious effects. Incorporating media communication theories into future research and actions is critical to facilitate understanding of the short- and long-term impacts of media coverage on illicit drugs and the avenues by which the AOD field can mitigate or inform future media debates on illicit drugs., (© 2010 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.)

Objective: To determine the lethal toxicity of five commonly-used illicit substances by relating the number of associated deaths to their availability., Methods: An index of toxicity was calculated for each of five drugs [heroin, cocaine/crack, ecstasy (MDMA), amphetamine and cannabis] as the ratio of the number of deaths associated with that substance to its availability in the period 2003-2007. Three separate proxy measures of availability were used (number of users as determined by household surveys, number of seizures by law enforcement agencies and estimates of the market size). All data are related to England and Wales only., Results: There was a broad correlation between all three denominators of availability. Not unexpectedly, heroin and cannabis showed, respectively, the highest and lowest toxicities. The index of fatal toxicity of MDMA was close to that of amphetamine and cocaine/crack. There was a rank correlation between this index and other measures of lethal toxicity based on safety ratios., Conclusions: These results are contrary to widely-held public views of the relative fatal toxicity of MDMA., (Copyright 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

Background: There still are concerns about unwanted effects of harm-reduction measures that may lead to an increasing number of new heroin users. Furthermore, it is thought that the admission of a substantial proportion of heroin users to methadone treatments reduces the demand on the heroin market and thus results in a lower price for street heroin. And finally, the intensity of police activity in the drug field may also affect prices for street heroin., Methods: As incidence of regular heroin use over more than a decade is rarely known elsewhere, we examined the Zurich experience between 1980 and 2005 by triangulating published and unpublished data, concerning heroin price, heroin purity level, heroin seizures and drug offences. This time period encompasses the time before and after the introduction of low-threshold methadone treatment in 1991., Results: We found a steep peak of heroin incidence in 1990. The street price of heroin already declined from 700 to 60 Swiss Francs during the 80s. The number of heroin consumptions possession offences reported by the police increased since 1991 and peaked in 1997, 2 years after the closure of the last open drug scene., Conclusion: The introduction of low-threshold methadone treatment has not resulted in lower heroin prices and the increased police activity during the 90s has not led to higher heroin prices, even though the higher police activity in the late 90s may have contributed to the prevention of a re-establishment of open drug scenes. In conclusion, we did not find a close relationship between street prices of heroin, police activity, and incidence of problematic heroin use.

Background: Heroin coming into the United States historically comes from three widely dispersed geographical regions: Southwest Asia, Southeast Asia and Mexico. A fourth source of US-bound heroin, from Colombia, originated in the early 1990s. The fact that the four heroin sources produce differing morphologies and qualities of heroin has not been critically examined. In addition, it is not well established how the contemporary competing dynamics of interdiction, or restriction of heroin flows across international boundaries, and neoliberal, e.g., global expansion of free trade, policies are affecting heroin markets. This paper will highlight changes in the US heroin market, including source trends, the political economy of the now dominant source and the resultant effects on the heroin risk environment by US region., Methods: Using a structural and historical framework this paper examines two decades of secondary data sources, including government and drug control agency documents, on heroin flows together with published work on the political and economic dynamics in Latin America., Results: Co-occurring neoliberal economic reforms may have contributed to paradoxical effects of US/Colombian interdiction efforts. Since entering the US market, heroin from Colombia has been distributed at a much higher quality and lower retail price. An increasingly exclusive market has developed with Mexican and Colombian heroin gaining market share and displacing Asian heroin. These trends have had dramatic effects on the risk environment for heroin consumers. An intriguing factor is that different global sources of heroin produce substantially different products. Plausible associations exist between heroin source/form and drug use behaviours and harms. For example, cold water-soluble powdered heroin (sources: Asia, Colombia) may be associated with higher HIV prevalence in the US, while low-solubility "black tar" heroin (BTH; source: Mexico) is historically used in areas with reduced HIV prevalence. BTH is associated with soft tissue infections caused by Clostridium bacteria., Conclusion: Source and type of heroin are structural factors in the risk environment of heroin users: source dictates distribution and type predicts practice. How specific types of heroin are used and with what risk is therefore distributed geographically. Continued flux in the heroin market and its effects on the risk environment for drug users deserves further attention.

In mid-1995, a government effort to reduce the supply of methamphetamine precursors successfully disrupted the methamphetamine market and interrupted a trajectory of increasing usage. The price of methamphetamine tripled and purity declined from 90 percent to 20 percent. Simultaneously, amphetaminerelated hospital and treatment admissions dropped 50 percent and 35 percent, respectively. Methamphetamine use among arrestees declined 55 percent. Although felony methamphetamine arrests fell 50 percent, there is no evidence of substantial reductions in property or violent crime. The impact was largely temporary. The price returned to its original level within four months; purity, hospital admissions, treatment admissions, and arrests approached preintervention levels within eighteen months. (JEL I12, K42).

Background: This paper explores user perceptions and practices in contrasting legal-policy milieux-Amsterdam (de facto decriminalization) and San Francisco (de jure criminalization) on four policy issues: sources of cannabis and separation of markets for it and other drugs; user perceptions of effects of price on consumption; effects of potency on consumption; and perceived risk of arrest and accessibility of cannabis., Methods: Questions on these issues were added to surveys on career use patterns amongst representative samples of experienced cannabis users using comparable methods., Results: Most San Francisco respondents obtained cannabis through friends who knew dealers, whereas most Amsterdam respondents obtained it from regulated shops. Only one in seven Amsterdam respondents but half the San Francisco respondents could obtain other drugs from their cannabis sources. Majorities under both systems had never found cannabis "too expensive." Amsterdam respondents preferred milder cannabis whilst San Francisco respondents preferred stronger; majorities in both cities reported self-titrating with potent cannabis. Risk and fear of arrest were higher in San Francisco, but most in both cities perceived arrest as unlikely. Estimated search times were somewhat longer in San Francisco, but a majority reported being able to access it within half a day., Conclusions: There is substantial separation of markets in the Dutch system. Policies designed to increase cannabis prices appear unlikely to impact consumption. Decriminalization was associated with a preference for milder cannabis, but under both policy regimes most respondents self-titrated when using more potent strains. Criminalization was associated with somewhat higher risk and fear of arrest and somewhat longer search times, but these did not appear to significantly impede access for most respondents.

In the last decade, a global trend of escalating ecstasy (MDMA, MDA, MDEA, MBDB) use was observed. Mentions on medical death certificates, last year's ecstasy use, number of drug offenders, seizures, prices and dosage levels figures were used for this descriptive and correlational study. Figures (1994-2003) were taken from the UK General Mortality Registers, from the Home Office Statistical Bulletins, from the British Crime Survey and from those reported to both the National Crime Intelligence and Forensic Science Services. A total of 394 ecstasy deaths mentions were here identified from the UK; in 42% of cases ecstasy was the sole drug mentioned. Overall, number of fatalities showed a year-per-year increase and positively correlated with: prevalence of last year's use (p < 0.01); number of offenders (p < 0.01) and number of seizures (p < 0.01) but negatively correlated with ecstasy price (p < 0.05). Price negatively correlated with: prevalence of last year's use (p < 0.001) and number of seizures (p < 0.01); but positively correlated with average MDMA dosage per tablet (p < 0.01). MDA, MDEA and MBDB accounted for a significant proportion of tablets only up to 1997, but not afterwards. Increasing production with a concomitant decrease in ecstasy price may have facilitated an increase in consumption levels and this, in turn, may have determined an increase in number of ecstasy deaths mentions. Only medical death certificates and not coroners' reports at the end of their inquests were here analysed; no data were available in respect of other drugs use and toxicology results.

Methamphetamine has been a continuous cause for concern for many years in Japan. Japan experienced the pandemics of methamphetamine abuse twice after World War II and is now facing the third pandemic. New data indicate that the abuse of drugs such as MDMA (ecstasy) and cannabis is rising at an alarming pace. An epidemiologic survey conducted by the National Research Institute reveals that drug abuse in Japan is still very low compared to that in other countries and regions; however, the current situation seems to be changing for the worse. Two major factors accelerate access to illicit drugs among young people. One is the presence of illicit drug-dealing groups, which indiscriminately offer drugs. The other is new technology such as the Internet and mobile phones. Strict law enforcement and intensive public awareness and prevention activities are indispensable in protecting young people from drug abuse.

The Swiss registry of charges concerning illegal trade and consumption of narcotics makes a distinction between first and subsequent charges as well as between several types of illegal drugs. It has been previously shown by using a mathematical model that changes in incidence of illegal drug use can be inferred from the time series of two indicators which are calculated from the numbers of first and subsequent charges. This method of data analysis is now refined in order to monitor the incidence of heroin/cocaine use. The conclusion is that 2,500 persons per year may have entered the population of habitual heroin/cocaine users in the early 1980s, and about 10,000 each year in 1991-93. After 1993, however, the incidence of heroin/cocaine use declined rapidly.