Addiction (Abingdon, England)
April 20, 2025
Joseph J Palamar, Nina Abukahok, Patricia Acosta et al.
7 citations
About 2.7% of adults attending electronic dance music nightclubs in New York City reported using Tusi (also called pink cocaine or tusibí) in the past year. Tusi is a drug mixture often containing ketamine and other substances, and users may be unaware of its composition. Hispanic individuals had five times higher odds of use compared with white individuals. People who used ecstasy/MDMA, ketamine, or 2C series drugs in the past year were more likely to also use Tusi. Those reporting Tusi use were more likely to test positive for cocaine, ketamine, MDMA, methamphetamine, or synthetic cathinones via saliva testing, and some tested positive for cocaine, ketamine, or methamphetamine even without reporting past-year use of those drugs.
Fundamental & clinical pharmacology
July 1, 2026
Nina Abukahok, Steven Lawrence, Samrachana Adhikari et al.
In the New York metropolitan area, over a third of clinics advertising ketamine for psychiatric conditions offer it for at-home use, raising safety concerns. A 2025 systematic web search identified 233 clinics; 36.5% prescribed ketamine for at-home use, 51.5% listed a medical doctor, 42.9% advertised oral ketamine, and depression was the most common condition treated (94.0%). Clinics advertising oral ketamine were over four times more likely to offer at-home use, while those listing a medical doctor were about half as likely. The findings suggest a consumer-oriented advertising approach that may warrant monitoring and clearer guidance to mitigate safety risks.
Current addiction reports
January 1, 2025
Nina Abukahok, Nicole D Fitzgerald, Joseph J Palamar
Tusi, or 'pink cocaine,' is a drug mixture containing ketamine and MDMA, often with additional substances like synthetic cathinones, cocaine, or methamphetamine. Its inconsistent chemical makeup complicates surveillance and harm reduction. Drug checking services have identified ketamine and MDMA as main components, with ketamine concentrations increasing over time in Spain. Surveys in Spain and Colombia show rising initiation, polysubstance use, and misclassification of tusi's contents. Harms stem largely from the polysubstance mixtures rather than any single component, yet mortality data typically focus on individual drugs. Tusi represents a novel trend: a blend of substances defined by its color and nightlife association, requiring standardized surveys, expanded drug checking, and improved toxicological monitoring.