Legal highs 'could cause more deaths' as treatment for them trebles

Legal high: Benzo Fury was linked to a death last month.SWNS

A specialist doctor believes it is only a matter of time before more people die from taking so-called legal highs.

The warning over the drugs came as a survey showed the number of young people needing emergency treatment after taking them has more than trebled in a year.

Patients who take the substances are often so seriously ill when they come to hospital that urgent specialist treatment is needed, Dr Richard Stevenson of Glasgow Royal Infirmary said.

He added: "When these patients arrive we can only treat the symptoms - because we don't know what they have taken... and neither do they.

"The symptoms are a very fast heartbeat, high blood pressure and muscles beginning to break down, leading to a very high risk of having a stroke or heart attack. They also have very altered perception, which can be very dangerous and makes it difficult to help or treat them.

"These legal highs cause an imbalance in the brain which overrides its usual pattern, the body temperature increases to 40 degrees, there's a risk of blood clotting, muscles dying and organs shutting down. None of the cases admitted this year have died but no-one should be under any misapprehension that legal highs are potential killers."

He continued: "If this steep rise in admissions continue, it is only a matter of time until we see deaths."

The hospitals surveyed were Glasgow's Western Infirmary, Inverclyde Royal, Vale of Leven and two of the country's busiest accident and emergency units at Paisley's Royal Alexandra hospital and Glasgow Royal Infirmary.

Earlier this month, police called for the power to seize legal highs following the death of a teenager at the Rockness music festival in June.

Alex Heriot, 19, from Edinburgh, is said to have taken Benzo Fury, a drug easily found for sale on the internet.

The Association of Scottish Police Superintendents said legislation should be amended to give officers the power to confiscate legal highs in line with existing powers for alcohol.

"Every time you make one set of chemicals illegal, another comes along," said Chief Superintendent David O'Connor.

"We have this strange situation where we can seize alcohol from young people but if you find them with drugs, not prescribed or over the counter, you don't have a firm legal footing to deal with it."

He said the term "legal high" sends a confusing message to people considering taking drugs. "The may think that because they're legal they're safe, even though it could kill them," he added.

A former legal high, mephedrone, was criminalised in 2010 after being linked to deaths. Dr Stevenson said: "The main problem with legal highs is that you just don't know what you are getting and these chemicals can interact very badly with prescribed medications - someone taking anti-depressants could find it a lethal combination.

"Many of those patients we see and talk to do not regard themselves as 'drug users' - they seem to think there is less risk with so-called legal highs which they regard as recreational drugs.

"The medical teams who treat them see all too often how dangerous and lethal these chemicals really are - the effects on the body are devastating."

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