July 7, 2008

Stealing HIV Meds to Mix With Marijuana

Recreational drug users in Durban, South Africa, are stealing HIV medications from positive people, crushing them and mixing them with marijuana to get high, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports (afp.google.com).

People who take the antiretroviral drug Stocrin have told authorities they’ve been attacked en route back from the hospital, while other HIV-positive people have had the drugs stolen from their homes.

Durban health officials told the AFP that recreational use of Stocrin may cause shortages of the drug in city hospitals and health centers.

“The practice is disturbing,” said health department spokesperson Leon Mbangwa. “A large number of HIV patients depend on the state sponsored treatment to stay healthy.”

AFP reports that combining Stocrin and marijuana can damage the immune system and be potentially fatal to those using the mixture for recreational purposes.

Search: marijuana, South Africa, Durban, Stocrin

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Previous Comments:

Eddie, Houston, 2008-09-02 13:44:49
if they are smoking this mixture and dieing, so be it, serves em right.

Bob, New Haven CT, 2008-08-15 11:44:07
Hang out in an ER anywhere between the artic circle and the rio grande. You will see people admitted because they huffed to much gasoline, paint thinner, whipped cream cans, etc ad'nauseum if it is a solvent they will put it in the ol glue bag. I believe anyone saying "how could they" or "we do this and they steal them" is ignorant or racsist. If it does get people high expect to read about it in pot here. After all who thought of putting embalming fluid in it

ebonny, london, 2008-08-14 10:55:47
OMG! JUSTIN, get real!! remember to do ur research and it will remind u were AIDS was created!yep..injected to prisoners then released them to public, and when was it first diagonosed! am a full brown african, living in UK and USA.I SAY WE MAKE A PARKING LOT OUT OF AFRICAN. ITS WERE THIS S%*T STARTED ANYHOW, what help JUSTIN have you given so far to africans???? am i missing some boxes of sustiva from u! next time u open ur toilet think twice coz u never contributed anything to AFRICANS! Got it!

colin, grand rapids, mi, 2008-08-12 18:27:28
OMG Justin, you may not be a redneck- but you have some real issues. that message is highly offensive. one think i can't stand is when one persecuted group of people (blacks, gays, jews, etc) persecutes another. aren't we all in this together? maybe it's human nature to pick on people one feels is lesser/ and or weaker than them to feel stronger and better about themselves. think twice next time about what u say. thanx

Mark Edwards, Los Angeles, 2008-07-14 18:03:31
I take Sustiva (Stocrin) in the form of Atripla and while I have never crushed it and smoked it with pot, I can't imagine anyone thinking this is a fun drug to get high on. I have been taking it for almost 2 years and I still have vivid dreams that are sometimes very frightening. I guess if someone is desperate enough they will try anything to get high. I know that if I didn't take if for HIV I would stay away from it. This is not a fun drug by any stretch of the imagination.

Philip, Dallas, 2008-07-09 14:22:58
I don't think it is about taking Stocrin/Sustiva/Atripla while smoking a joint. It is more about SMOKING Stocrin/Sustiva/Atripla in the joint.

Joey, , 2008-07-09 12:33:47
Why in the hell would anyone think that these ARV meds could make you high.Am I missing something here?

Marc, New York, 2008-07-08 19:15:19
STOCRIN (which = Sustiva) is a drug of abuse ? What? Do they not have enough glue to sniff over there ? The response to abusing weed and stocrin seems a bit severe. Are we talking about large quantities here? Am I in the same boat if I take my Atripla and smoke a joint for nausea ?

Michael, Haslett, 2008-07-08 12:14:04
This is such a shame, we try so hard to help those who are less forunate then we are in the USA and Canada and see what happens. I sure hope that the police there would do more to stop this crime from happening.

Derrick, Washington, DC, 2008-07-08 11:39:03
Wow, Justin. Quite the racist, aren't we?

Justin, , 2008-07-08 09:36:07
Sorry for my last message. I knew it wouldn't be posted anyhow. I'm not that redneck -just pissed how helpless people are robbed of the very thing that is going to keep them alive. Very disturbing.

Justin, , 2008-07-08 09:33:33
Disgusting! You help these people out and see what happens. I'm glad I live in Canada! So now what - you give HIV meds to a population to control the virus and the meds are causing crime. I say we make a parking lot out of Africa. It's where this s*#@ started anyhow.