A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tells a tale of tragic consequences at a party in Los Angeles.
Bad reactions to ecstasy, in some instances mixed with alcohol or other drugs, were implicated in one death and 18 hospitalizations among people attending a 2010 rave on New Year’s Eve. The rave was attended by approximately 45,000 people and held at a venue jointly owned by the City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County and the state.
Ecstasy "can be a very dangerous drug and occasionally people die, usually from a hyperthermic state with muscle breakdown and kidney failure," said Dr. James Garbutt, a professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who was not involved in the CDC report.
Ecstasy use is on the rise partly because there is a perception that the drug is safe. Garbutt believes that the CDC report illustrates the danger and is instrumental in "educating young folks in a realistic way about risks may help to reduce use."
The CDC report says that 18 people were treated at a hospital within 12 hours of the party. All were between 16 and 34 years old and nine were women. In addition to using ecstasy, 10 had used alcohol, and five used other drugs. Three patients were admitted to the hospital. One of those three ended up in intensive care. This patient had seizures, a breakdown of muscle tissue, kidney failure requiring hemodialysis, and liver failure. He recovered after 28 days in the hospital but continued to need dialysis after his release.
The patient who died did so at home about 12 hours after the rave. The coroner’s report listed the cause of death as "multiple drug intoxication." Friends said he had used ecstasy and cocaine while at the rave, and injected heroin when he returned home.
In the United States, ecstasy-related visits to the emergency room have increased almost 75 percent from 2004 to 2008, according to the CDC. A recent survey of teenagers discovered an increase in ecstasy use in 2009, and a decrease in perception of risk associated with the drug.
In Los Angeles County, there was an increase of 650 percent of people entering treatment programs who listed ecstasy as their drug of choice.
