(Medellín, Colombia) In the south of Medellín, the music and the hubbub of the crowds resonate in the Poblado district, the most touristy and festive in the city. It’s Friday evening, so the “parque Lleras” (Lleras Park) and “calle 10” (street 10) see hundreds of national and international revelers flocking.
PHOTO JORGE CALLE, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The Poblado district, in the south of Medellín, where a large part of the city’s festive places are concentrated. They bring together Colombians and international tourists.
In this setting the pink drug known as tusi, nexus or eros circulates. Its psychotropic effect is appreciated for partying. This substance is obtained by mixing several components such as ketamine (a sedative for horses), MDMA (synthetic drug) or caffeine. The white powder obtained is then colored pink and ingested orally or nasally.
PHOTO JOAQUIN SARMIENTO, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
The tusi drug is normally white in color, but pink coloring is added to it to make it more attractive.
For several weeks, hospitals across the country and toxicology centers have been warning about the increase in patients with complications linked to the consumption of tusi. The Dr Jorge Marin Alonso, toxicologist at the Soma clinic in Medellín and a speaker in other hospitals in the region, confirms the increase in cases.
PHOTO JORGE CALLE, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The Soma clinic in central Medellín receives patients who have consumed tusi. In recent months, the 20 beds in the toxicology department have been mostly occupied by people who have consumed it. Here, the Dr Jorge Alonso Marin with his patients during a daily visit.
“The tusi has been in our region for almost three years now,” he said. But before, we received one patient per week with complications, whereas today, we receive one per day. This is more than alarming, because as it is a drug mixed with other substances, its effects are multiplied and more dangerous. If you have an alteration in your heart rate or your respiratory system, it will be much stronger in intensity. »
PHOTO JORGE CALLE, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The Dr Jorge Marin Alonso, toxicologist at the Soma Clinic in Medellín
The patient becomes pale, with very dilated pupils, and may suffer respiratory or cardiac arrest. If he is not treated within the next few minutes, the after-effects are dramatic. Patients also have hallucinations and sometimes muscle fiber ruptures, causing kidney problems or even diseases linked to hepatitis.
The Dr Jorge Marin Alonso, toxicologist at the Soma Clinic in Medellín
Almost instant addiction
Addiction to this drug is almost instantaneous and the need to increase the dose is constant. In the Soma clinic, the twenty beds intended for toxicology patients are all occupied, largely by people who have consumed tusi.
Same observation near Bogotá, the capital, in the Narconon rehabilitation center. From the outside, the center looks like a villa or second home. But inside, it has a spa, a swimming pool and workshops to help its residents get rid of their drug addiction. Therapy for approximately four to five months is recommended. Registrations there have increased. As for the physical and psychological consequences on patients, they are very difficult to treat.
Jhon Jerez has worked with the Narconon program for 20 years. He explains that the establishment “carries out treatments based on natural products. The withdrawal effects generated by the drug are more intense and more complex to treat in patients who have consumed tusi. For example, convulsions are stronger, tremors and feelings of shivering too. The process can take several weeks. We saw crazy drug mixes, mixes with benzodiazepine, oxycodone, morphine and methamphetamine.”
Since its creation, 400 patients have been treated at Narconon. According to Jhon Jerez, “around 72% recovered after 4 to 6 months of treatment. Some did not complete the program because they relapsed or for financial or family reasons.”
Among the patients is Luis Miguel Zapata (his name has been changed to ensure anonymity). “When I arrived at the center, I smoked marijuana, drank a lot of alcohol and consumed tusi. I started at university. The tusi was out of curiosity, because this drug is fashionable. »
When you take tusi, your reality is completely altered. You feel euphoric and very relaxed. Everything around you is different, like the music, it is more intense. Your vision transforms, it’s as if everything is in slow motion.
Luis Miguel Zapata, former tusi consumer
Today, after a few weeks of treatment, he is coming back to his senses. “ In Valledupar [ville du nord-est de la Colombie], I lived in a context that pushed me to consume. I felt like I wouldn’t have the courage or strength to quit this drug on my own. Here, I managed to detoxify myself physically, and now, I work on my mind to ensure that I experience things in the present and more peacefully. I reconnect with others. It’s hard to get away from these synthetic drugs, they are very addictive, omnipresent in many social circles and very fashionable. »
An expensive drug
This synthetic drug is considered expensive, as a gram can sell for 200,000 pesos (around $63 CAD) when pure, and around 70,000 pesos ($22) if mixed with other substances. So, the clientele is generally made up of people with great purchasing power, notably models, actors or public figures. But the general public is also interested in it. He then buys the less expensive version of tusi, the one mixed with other substances.
For 10 years, this “cocktail of substances” has been present at parties taking place throughout the country. It is consumed mainly by people aged 18 to 34, according to data from the “Échele cabeza” project. The arrival of fentanyl, another synthetic drug, is of greater concern because its effects are 50 times more powerful than those of heroin and it is mixed with tusi.
For toxicologist Jorge Marin Alonso, the worst is yet to come. ” This phenomenon is global. It is due in particular to the greater accessibility to psychoactive substances, thanks to the development of the sale of substances on social networks and home deliveries, but also because there is a reduction in the perception of risk. Fentanyl is even more dangerous. Because from the first dose, you can be dependent. And it is a drug that can be absorbed by simple contact with the skin. »
According to the Colombian Ministry of Health, more than 1,300 cases of fentanyl consumption have been identified in Colombia. This drug has been classified as the deadliest in the world by the World Health Organization.