FENTANYL UPDATE- Trends and Treatment Programs

Fentanyl has been a scourge to our citizens, however, fewer deaths to fentanyl overdoses have been reported over the last year and a half. And the Snohomish County Health Department continues with new initiatives to reduce overdoses.

Learn more about Fentanyl in Snohomish County and how you can get help for yourself, a family member, or a friend in the latest issue of the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office’s crime prevention newsletter, “Partners in Crime Prevention.”

 

 

Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office: https://www.snohomishcountywa.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/7306

 

 

KING COUNTY– Fentanyl Takes Lives of Teens

Teens have long experimented with drugs, be it alcohol, marijuana, and sometimes cocaine, ecstasy, or heroin and other opioids. The deaths of two teen boys in Sammamish and another from Ballard High School in Seattle points out the extreme dangers of the modern opioid epidemic.

Authorities say that the deaths were due to fentanyl overdoses. Detectives are investigating where the fentanyl came from. So far in 2019, seven teenagers in King County have died from fentanyl-related overdoses.

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that works similarly to morphine and is 50 to 100 times more potent as morphine. It is prescribed by physicians to treat severe pain and is applied as a shot, in a patch that is put on the skin, or as a lozenge.

Most deaths from a fentanyl overdose come from illegally manufactured and distributed fentanyl. Some drug dealers mix fentanyl with other drugs, such as heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA, to give the drug an extra and cheap “kick.” Drug dealers sell it in the form of a powder, drops on blotter paper, in eye droppers or made into pills that look like other prescription opioids. Local public health authorities say that fentanyl has been found in blue, white and pale green pills stamped with an “M” on one side and a “30” on the other side. Fentanyl pills have also been stamped with K9, 215 and √48.

Fentanyl’s effects can include extreme happiness, drowsiness, nausea, confusion, constipation, sedation, problems breathing, and unconsciousness. A Fentanyl overdose can slow or stop their breathing and can decrease the amount of oxygen in the brain leading to a coma, and permanent brain damage or death, like an opioid or heroin overdose. 

Given the potency of fentanyl, a tiny amount can be fatal.

The signs of an overdose include irregular sleep patterns, such as snoring when someone usually does not snore or difficulty in waking someone up. Other symptoms include cold, clammy skin, skin turning blue, coma, and respiratory failure.

Should someone have any of these symptoms, call 911 immediately. If available, apply Narcan. Stay with the patient until help arrives.

Fentanyl is serious business. Death due to an overdose can happen quickly.

Obviously, no parent wants their child to go through an experience like a fentanyl overdose. Educating your teenage child about illegal fentanyl should go a long way to help them avoid the pitfalls of this narcotic.



The Seattle Times:

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/sammamish-officials-heartbroken-over-deaths-of-2-skyline-high-school-students-who-overdosed-on-fentanyl/



KOMO TV:

https://komonews.com/news/local/ballard-high-school-student-dies-from-accidental-fentanyl-overdose



Partnership for Drug-Free Kids:

https://drugfree.org/parent-blog/fentanyl-synthetic-opioids-5-things-need-know/



 National Institute on Drug Abuse:

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/fentanyl



Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/opioids/fentanyl.html   

OPIOID CRISIS- Overdose Deaths from Fentanyl are Up

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released data showing a 70% increase in overdose deaths attributed to fentanyl during the first six months of this year in Washington State.

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is used by doctors to treat severe pain. Often applied as a patch to the skin, fentanyl is 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin. A dose as small as 0.25 mg can kill.

In Snohomish County, in 2017, 23 people died from a fentanyl overdose. In 2018, preliminary figures show 34 people died from a fentanyl overdose, a 48% increase. In Washington State, in the first six months of 2018, 81 people died from fentanyl overdoses while during the same period in 2017 48 people died from fentanyl overdoses. That represents a 70% increase in fentanyl overdose deaths.

The Washington State Department of Health says that the overdoses are the result of taking illicit drugs. Illicit fentanyl has been found in counterfeit pills that look like prescription opioids. It has also been found in powders, colored white and other colors, that could be included in other illicit drugs such as heroin. The fact that this powerful drug could be included in other street drugs without the knowledge of the user shows how risky taking illicit drugs has become.

The Washington State Department of Health wants drug users to know this information so that they can take precautions. If you have someone in your family or a friend who uses heroin or illegal opioids, please pass this information to them. The Department of Health recommends,

·         Seek treatment. Health professionals have been recommending medication-assisted treatment options for those addicted to opioids. Opioid users can seek treatment from the Washington Recovery Help Line at (866) 789-1511 or online at http://www.warecoveryhelpline.org/.

·         Carry naloxone. For information on where you can find naloxone, go to http://stopoverdose.org/section/find-naloxone-near-you/.

·         If you witness an overdose, call 911, give naloxone and do rescue breathing. Fentanyl may require multiple doses of naloxone to restore breathing. The law (RCW 69.50.315) says neither the victim nor persons assisting with an overdose will be prosecuted for drug possession.

·         Never use drugs alone.

·         Be careful about using too fast. Fentanyl is fast-acting and deadly. Many experienced opioid users have overdosed or died by using too much, too quickly.

Washington State Department of Health:

https://www.doh.wa.gov/Newsroom/2018NewsReleases/18166OpioidOverdoseFentanylNewsRelease

The Seattle Times:

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/overdose-deaths-from-powerful-narcotic-fentanyl-on-the-rise-in-washington/

FENTANYL- Fake Xanax Pills Reported with Fentanyl

Snohomish Overdose Prevention on Facebook is warning the public about counterfeit Xanax pills that the Snohomish Regional Drug and Gang Task Force reports seeing in Snohomish County.

 Fentanyl is an extremely potent opioid that can cause an overdose or death in small amounts.

Symptoms of a fentanyl overdose include pinpoint pupils, weak muscles, dizziness, confusion, extreme sleepiness, loss of consciousness, profoundly slowed heartbeat, very low blood pressure, dangerously slowed or stopped breathing, bluish tint to nails and lips.

If you discover someone who you suspect of a fentanyl overdose call 911 immediately. If naloxone is available, apply a dose. More than one dose may be needed to reverse the effects of fentanyl.

The Snohomish Regional Drug and Gang Task Force has been expecting fentanyl to show up in Snohomish County due to its presence in the rest of the U.S. and British Columbia. The task force’s observations demonstrates that fentanyl has arrived in the county.

Snohomish Overdose Prevention:

https://www.facebook.com/NoOverdoseSnoCo/

San Francisco Health Network:

http://www.sfhealthnetwork.org/for-immediate-release-opioid-overdoses-in-sf-caused-by-counterfeit-xanax-pill-containing-fentanyl/

National Institute on Drug Abuse:

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/fentanyl

Drugabuse.com:

https://drugabuse.com/library/fentanyl-overdose/#what-to-do-if-you-overdose-on-fentanyl