Study, Jul/17: "Naloxone"

Excerpt

Naloxone is indicated for the treatment of opioid toxicity, specifically to reverse respiratory depression from opioid use. It is useful in accidental or intentional overdose and acute or chronic toxicity. Common opioid overdoses treated with naloxone include heroin, fentanyl, carfentanil, hydrocodone, oxycodone, methadone, etc. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an alert in October 2015 reporting an increase in fentanyl-related accidental overdose deaths due to illicitly manufactured fentanyl. Additionally, in August 2016, the CDC updated their previous alert after a sharp increase in the availability of counterfeit narcotic and benzodiazepine pills being sold on the street containing varying amounts of fentanyl and other similar compounds. A case report in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) from February 2017 highlighted multiple cases of opioid overdoses in a short period in patients who believed they were using cocaine. The white powder was later determined to be fentanyl with trace amounts of cocaine, highlighting the need for healthcare providers to consider opioid co-ingestion, either known or unknown, in patients who were thought to have done other illicit drugs.

Abstract:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28722939

Full Article:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK441910/#article-25518.s1