POLICE FRUSTRATED BY ECSTASY DEATHS

Gainesville for years has been an epicenter in the use of Ecstasy. Now, in
the endless search for new highs, area drug users are experimenting with
different combinations.

And they are dying from them, said police and University of Florida drug
experts.

Data released by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement show a trend of
increasing deaths from Ecstasy use.

Ecstasy users also appear to be taking odd and dangerous combinations of
drugs, said Bruce Goldberger, UF associate professor and forensic toxicologist.

"What we are finding now, in the last year or two, is a trend toward more
young people mixing Ecstasy with other drugs such as Xanax or Viagra,"
Goldberger said. "In some of these cases they are mixing a stimulant with
the sedative. It may lead to central nervous system stimulation and or
depression. It may lead to seizures and hypoxia - no oxygen to the brain -
which can lead to brain damage and death."

Officials have found a correlation with deaths in which Ecstasy and related
drugs were present, Goldberger said.

Data from Goldberger and Dr. Mark Gold, chief of addiction medicine at UF's
McKnight Brain Institute, coincides with the release of a report on 2001
drug-related deaths by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Last year, Ecstasy and its closely related chemicals, called methylated
amphetamines, were present in 147 of the 15,000 bodies that had autopsies
performed on them by state medical examiners.

Almost 70 percent of the 147 deaths were from overdoses, traffic crashes
and drownings.

In the 1,304 deaths specifically from overdoses, almost half involved
multiple drugs and 31 involved methylated amphetamines, reported FDLE.

The agency began tracking the presence of methylated amphetamines in July
2000. In the last half of 2000, the drugs were present in 59 autopsies.

FDLE data shows that last year the drugs were detected in three deaths in
Gainesville.

FDLE Special Agent Jennifer Cook Pritt said difficulty detecting drug use
is frustrating for police.

She believes extra training is necessary.

"It's not always obvious when someone is high on these substances, and some
of the indicators are different from those we see with alcohol," she said.
"Officers need specific training to recognize drivers impaired by
methylated amphetamines, and right now there isn't enough training available."

Goldberger performs toxicology tests for several medical examiners
throughout Florida. He believes many of the deaths are caused by mixing
Ecstasy with other drugs.

"It's kind of a two-fold concern - mixing Ecstasy with other drugs and the
increase in the traffic fatalities associated with the drugs," he said.

"When you are mixing drugs, it certainly leads to more cognitive
impairment, which can lead to a traffic fatality. When you are mixing very
potent drugs, it can lead to a drug overdose."

Gold said the drugs typically increase energy, wakefulness and a sense of
euphoria. Users also can experience chest pain, shortness of breath,
nervous energy and increased risks of anxiety, depression, Parkinson's
disease, liver failure and heart attack.