Irvine Welsh His first novel, "Trainspotting", was published in 1993. Set in the mid-1980s, it uses a series of loosely connected short stories to tell the story of a group of characters tied together by decaying friendships, heroin addiction and stabs at escape from the oppressive boredom and brutality of their lives in the housing schemes. It was released to shock and outrage in some circles and great acclaim in others; "Time Out" called it "funny, unflinchingly abrasive, authentic and inventive", and "The Sunday Times" called Welsh "the best thing that has happened to British writing for decades". It was adapted as
Heroin and pneumonia. After a history of long-term use, withdrawal symptoms can begin within hours of last use. When given by injection into a vein, heroin has two to three times the effect as a similar dose of morphine. It typically comes as a white or brown powder. Treatment of heroin addiction often includes behavioral therapy and medications. Medications can include buprenorphine, methadone, or naltrexone. A heroin overdose may be treated with naloxone. An estimated 17 million people use opiates of which heroin is the most common. Together with other opioids, they resulted in 122,000 deaths. The total number of heroin