THL examined drug residues in used syringes and needles collected from five social and health counseling points.
Health and according to the Swedish Welfare Institute (THL), buprenorphine, amphetamine and the conversion drug alpha-PHiP, which belongs to synthetic cathinones, were the most common injecting drugs in Helsinki last fall.
Buprenorphine is an active ingredient in Suboxone, which is used as an opioid replacement therapy drug in Finland, and in Subutex, which is illegally imported from abroad.
According to the findings of THL’s research, a third of all buprenorphine used by injection came from the buprenorphine-naloxone combination product Suboxone. The rest was probably imported buprenorphine such as Subutex or Temgesic. Temgesic is a strong painkiller used in Finland as well.
THL’s according to the most significant change in intravenous drug use is the increased use of synthetic cathinones. Based on research, they seem to have partially replaced the injection of amphetamine.
“There is very little researched information about the new synthetic cathinones, which means that not much is known about their exact effects or mutual differences. The user also usually cannot have certain information about the compound used. This can increase the harm caused by use,” says the head of the forensic chemistry unit in the press release Teemu Gunnar.
Injection use was also found with sleeping and sedative drugs belonging to benzodiazepines, as well as other amphetamines and synthetic cathinones. Cocaine, heroin or fentanyl were not found in any of the syringes examined.
THL examined drug residues in used syringes and needles collected from five social and health counseling points. The method provides information on the prevalence of drugs used by injecting and the changes that occur in it.
Buprenorphine is the most commonly used opioid in Finland and the most common drug used in opioid replacement therapy in Finland. According to THL, it is safe and effective when used correctly, but when misused and especially when combined with other drugs and narcotics, it is by far the narcotic that causes the most poisoning deaths in Finland.
Together with the University of Helsinki, THL has determined the number of buprenorphine deaths by welfare area. According to the survey, the number of deaths was the highest in North Karelia and the lowest in Lapland, South Karelia and East Uusimaa.
In North Karelia, there were 5–6 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants per year. In North Ostrobothnia, West Uusimaa, Päijät-Hämee, Kanta-Hämee and Kymenlaakso the corresponding figure was 4–4.9 and in Lapland, South Karelia and East Uusimaa 1–1.9. The reading for each well-being area is the average for the research years 2018–2020.
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