Desomorphine otherwise known as Krokodil or Crocodil has made headlines in recent years. Commonly referred to as the zombie drug it is most notable for its effects on the human body that result in skin to atrophy. Desomorphine is a derivative of morphine. It was patented and synthesized in Switzerland and its brand name is Permonid. It is described as being ten times stronger than morphine. Desomorphine or “Krokodil” made major headlines in the year 2002. This was when there were reports in Russia that showed abusers of the street drug had horrible side effects that resembled skin melting. The nickname is derived from the fact that users skin presents as a crocodile like look. On the streets desomorphine is a cheaper substitute for heroin. What causes such negative affects is not really the drug itself, but …show more content…
When it comes to the addictive nature of bath salts users report that there is as much of a chance for the abuser to become addicted on bath salts as they are on meth. It has also been shown that users build up a tolerance over time to bath salts which requires them to take more to get the same high. This increases the likelihood that the user will overdose on the drug which would cause hospitalization or death. Bath salts are a powerful hallucinogenic drug which sometimes causes violent behavior.
Overall both the synthetic drug bath salts and crocodil result in damage to both the brain and body. The average lifespan for a crocodil user is 2 years while a bath salts user has a large chance of succumbing to an overdose after building up a tolerance. The drugs themselves have varying can be obtained with varying difficulty in the United States. One thing that is similar in both crocodile and bath salts is that the addiction can be treated through in-patient care involving the proper medical training and cognitive behavior