CMAJ • September 9, 2008; 179 (6). doi:10.1503/cmaj.1080091.
© 2008 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors
All editorial matter in CMAJ represents the opinions of the authors and not necessarily those of the Canadian Medical Association.
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Letters

Limiting production of crystal meth

Joseph Caplan

Honourary Consultant Psychiatrist, North York General Hospital, Toronto, Ont.

I read with interest the recent Public Health piece on methamphetamine hydrochloride (crystal meth).1 Two subsequent articles on the same topic provided more details, but there were no comments on prevention programs or on limiting production of this drug.2,3

I had a distinct sense of déjà vu. Forty-five years ago, I reported in CMAJ the first North American case of addiction to diethylpropion.4 This drug is chemically distinct from amphetamines, but the symptoms resulting from abuse are identical to those described by Buxton and Dove.1 The only difference is one of degree.

My hospital colleagues and I believed that limiting availability was the best way to deal with the abuse problem. We persuaded the manufacturer to have the product made available by prescription, not on demand. This reduced the problem significantly.

I would suggest the same approach be used to address the illegal manufacture of crystal meth. It is clear that the manufacturing process is widely known. Is there any chemical used in the production of crystal meth that could be made subject to licensing if it were purchased in large quantities?

Footnotes

Competing interests: None declared.


REFERENCES

  1. Buxton JA, Dove NA. The burden and management of crystal meth use. CMAJ 2008;178:1537-40.[Free Full Text]
  2. Cronkwright Kirkos W, Carrique T, Griffen K, et al. The York Region Methamphetamine Strategy. CMAJ 2008;178:1655-6.[Free Full Text]
  3. Kish SJ. Pharmacologic mechanisms of crystal meth. CMAJ 2008;178:1679-82.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  4. Caplan J. Habituation to diethylpropion (Tenuate). CMAJ 1963;88:943-4.[Medline]




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