Festivals following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions: Prevalence of new psychoactive substances and illicit drugs.
Environment international August 1, 2023 Nikolaos Rousis, Richard Bade, Iván Romero-Sánchez et al. 33 citations
During New Year celebrations and a summer festival in a large Spanish city, wastewater samples revealed high consumption of both new psychoactive substances (NPS) and traditional illicit drugs. Eleven NPS—including synthetic cathinones, benzodiazepines, plant-based NPS, and dissociatives—plus seven illicit drugs were detected across both events. Consumption peaked at each event, and drug use patterns shifted markedly over the six months between them. Statistically significant differences were observed for 3-MMC, eutylone, cocaine, MDMA, heroin, and pseudoephedrine when comparing the two events or a normal week. Wastewater-based epidemiology offers a cost-effective, timely, and ethically straightforward way to monitor drug use and complement public health surveillance.