A new date rape drug, called Progesterex, which sterilises victims, is doing the rounds. Or so the story goes.

A recent posting on Sarie Magazine's internet forum concerns a drug, allegedly called Progesterex. This drug, which according to the posting, is a sterilisation drug used for horses, is being used by rapists to ensure that their victims do not fall pregnant.

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Research revealed it to be a hoax.

"No such drug exists"
"This drug does not exist," says Cape Town pharmacist, Ockert Delport. "There is not a drug on the market which can instantly sterilise people or animals. The closest thing to this, are drugs that are used to prevent animals going on heat, but these do not have a permanent effect."

He also commented on the fact that sterilisation involves surgical procedures in both people and animals and that there is no tablet that would achieve this.

According to the forum posting, Progesterex is allegedly used in conjunction with Rohypnol as a date-rape drug, and it causes permanent infertility, as it instantly sterilises its victims.

The rapists, so the story goes, use this in order to avoid being identified by means of paternity tests months later. But, as has been pointed out, DNA tests done on sperm could identify an attacker shortly after an attack – one does not have to wait nine months for the baby to be born in order to do determine paternity.

Hoax story gets second wind
Research on the Internet revealed that this story has been doing the rounds since 1999, but that it has recently resurfaced with a vengeance. The person, whose, whose name and work details were provided in the posting, denied all knowledge of it and asked that the posting be removed immediately.

"What makes this kind of hoax story disturbing, is that it detracts from the seriousness of the issue regarding the use of real drugs, such as Rohypnol, in date-rape cases," Delport added.

There have been many cases across the world of women, who have been raped after having drugs such as Rohypnol, slipped into their drinks. Rohypnol is a strong sedative drug and few victims have any clear recall of what happened to them in the hours after taking the drug.

"But while women should be on the lookout in public places for people meddling with their drinks, they should not worry at all about being sterilised on the spot," says Delport.

(Susan Erasmus, Health24)
 

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