Comment · Sat, November 3, 2012
do you think ecstasy users underestimate the dangers of the drug (particularly hyperthermia-related issues)?
Original post in this thread
pylori · 14 points
if you're aware of the issues it's not too hard to remain safe whilst using it, but the fact that so many people are uninformed about the dangers/risks makes things worse (death from ecstasy is reported to be in the 1 in 2000 range). also the fact that the quality/purity of the drug is so varied probably doesn't help things either (as well as being cut with other substances.
i read one case report of a police confiscated pill containing 270mg! jeez imagine taking that amount for the first time, and one patient presented with a temperature of 43C!
i think there's more rave organisers could do to ensure people remain hydrated, and, more importantly, better drug education in schools worldwide to make people aware of the effects and keep them safe. i've always struggled to understand how we have understood and adopted a safe-sex attitude to sex education instead of abstinence only (well at least in most of europe) but we can't do this with drugs. my school drug education consisted of "don't do it, drugs are bad, mmkay" and the horrible talk to frank scheme. i was left with the impression that all drugs cause krokodil-style effects, luckily i wised up on my own.
What they were answering
pylori · -2 points
These studies definitely confirmed MDMA was the cause, it's not a vague mention of it, the entire article was about discussing mortality and dangers with respect to MDMA in a medical journal, not something on the local news being sensationalised. You can find full text versions here:
http://ge.tt/1fj6smQ/v/0
and http://ge.tt/3PdHxmQ/v/0 if you're interested. If there's criticisms to make it's definitely not with the accuracy of those statements.
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb
From the study you linked:
>Extreme hyperthermia in MDMA toxicity defined as temperatures
over 42C have been identified as a threshold that presages
severe morbidity and mortality. Temperatures under 40C
seem to represent a threshold in which recovery is generally
expected. This is borne out in this series where the average
peak temperature in those with severe toxicity was 41.6C and
those who survived had an average temperature of 39.3C.
The people that died has sustained temperatures of over 107 degrees Fahrenheit! Drugs or not, you are going to die at those temperatures.