Prison service urges 'extra vigilance' after several concerning overdoses

The Irish Prisons Service said it is working with the HSE in response to the overdoses

The HSE has extended a red alert drugs warning to Irish prisons after a number of concerning overdoses among the prison population.

The Irish Prisons Service said it is working with the HSE in response to the overdoses, with extra quantities of the anti-opioid naloxone being made available and “extra vigilance” currently being observed in prison settings.

The HSE said it was extending its red alert to include prison settings, as an extension of the warning it has had in place for several months for drug users in Cork and Dublin.

The decision was made after a synthetic opioid substance known as n-pyrrolidino protonitazene was found contained in powder in a prison setting.

It said that recent overdoses have been linked to a light-brown or tan powder containing a synthetic opioid known as n-pyrrolidino protonitazene.

Such variants of the drug nitazene have also been found in tablets in the UK, the HSE said. Nitazene itself was first sold more than 60 years ago as a morphine alternative but was never approved for the medical market.

“Nitazenes are strong synthetic opioids that can cause serious overdoses, hospitalisation and drug-related death,” the HSE said in a statement.

Official advice is that while it is safer not to use drugs, prisoners who are planning to do so should “talk to a medical professional about treatment and harm reduction”.

They should also avoid new types of drugs or new batches for sale, the HSE said.

The alert is the latest of several such warnings concerning n-pyrrolidino protonitazene which were first issued late last year after a series of atypical overdoses were observed among heroin users in Dublin.

Early last December the HSE had urged “extreme caution” among users after eight overdoses related to a new powder being sold on the heroin market in Cork were reported in less than two days.