VietNamNet Bridge - At least three junior secondary schools in HCM City have detected students taking Recotus cough medicine to have the “sense of excitement, no longer afraid of the teacher’s scolding."

The Tang Bat Ho Junior Secondary School where seven girls were detected to use the drug in early October.

On October 25, Lu Gia Junior Secondary School in District 11 reported that the school supervisors recently discovered a group of 8th graders with glassy face and slurred speech. Checking their bags, the supervisors found two packs of Recotus cough medicine.

"Some of them showed abnormal signs. They could not speak clearly like they were drunken, but they did not have smell of alcohol,” said the school supervisor.

The school invited parents of these students to inform them of the incident and discuss measures to prevent this in the future.

"But recently, some parents informed us that their children were still enticed by classmates to take this medicine in order to make their teachers think that they are sick, so that they would not have to recite their lessons," the school’s representative said.

At Le Quy Don Junior Secondary School in District 11, although the school has not detected any students taking the medicine, some students said they were enticed to use it. And in fact, some parents have caused many parents to look to schools warnings, and closely monitor the students having unusual manifestations.

In early October, seven girl students from Tang Bat Ho Junior Secondary School in District 4 also used the medicine. A number of parents said that someone came to the school to force their children use the medicine; if they refused to do this, they would be beaten.

A year ago, hearing that taking Recotus cough medicine would help achieve organism, 20 students of a secondary school in District 2, Ho Chi Minh City, took the medicine during class. Four of them were hospitalized in a state of anxiety, drowsiness, and trembling limbs.

In 2011, more than 40 students in a secondary school in District 4 took Recotus. In 2009, more than 10 students of a secondary school in District 7 were also hospitalized with the same symptoms after taking this cough medicine. Most of the children said they took Recotus because of curiosity; others used to have symptoms of illness to be out of school.

Associate Professor, Dr. Truong Van Tuan, Chairman of the HCM City Association of Pharmacists, said Recotus is cough medicine, containing dextromethorphan - reliever. The concentration of this substance in the drug is at acceptable levels so it is allowed for sale at pharmacies and buyers do not need a doctor's prescription.

"Even the addictive substance in this medicine is at low level, but if one takes many tablets once, he will still be hallucinogenic and suffer from other reactions such as palpitations and trembling," Tuan said.

According to him, the drugs are sold freely so it is necessary to strengthen education for students about its harmful effects to prevent abuse.

Another pharmaceutical experts said, if abusing Recotus (over 4 tablets a day), users can be poisoned. If taking too much of the medicine, users may die if they are not quickly rescued.

Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh, an official from the Ho Chi Minh City Health Department, said the department has asked districts to enhance management of drugs with addictive substances, including Recotus. The Department of Health also requested drug stores to strengthen control of the sale of Recotus, restricting sales of this drug to the teenage buyers.

Le Ha