Mix of Vet Tranquilizer, Fentanyl an 'Emerging Threat,' U.S. Officials Warn

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• April 12, 2023
• Full Page

U.S. officials are intensifying efforts to crack down on illicit use of the veterinary tranquilizer xylazine, which can cause painful and deadly side effects in humans.

The drug, when mixed with the opioid fentanyl, has been designated an “emerging threat,” the Offic...

U.S. Travelers Warned About Counterfeit Pills Containing Fentanyl in Mexico Pharmacies

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• March 20, 2023
• Full Page

Traveling in Mexico? Use caution when buying medications there, cautions the U.S. State Department.

The warning was issued in response to concerns about counter...

Opioids Cause Half of All Poisonings in U.S. Kids Age 5 and Younger

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• March 8, 2023
• Full Page

Opioids pose the greatest poison risk to children in the United States, accounting for more than half of poisoning deaths in infants and toddlers, a new study reports.

About 52% of poisoning deaths of children aged 5 and younger in 2018 involved the ingestion of an opioi...

U.S. Deaths Involving Meth Are Skyrocketing, Fentanyl a Big Factor

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• February 21, 2023
• Full Page

Deaths from methamphetamine among Americans increased 50-fold between 1999 and 2021, a chilling new study reports.

Most of these deaths also involved heroin or fentanyl, according to researchers.

"The staggering increase in methamphetamine-related deaths in the Uni...

U.S. Tourists in Northern Mexico Are Buying Counterfeit Pills Containing Fentanyl

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• February 6, 2023
• Full Page

Researchers have uncovered groundbreaking evidence that pharmacies in tourist areas of Northern Mexico are selling counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamines.

The pills, mainly sold to U.S. tourists without a prescription, were passed off as contr...

Pandemic Brought Surge in Teen Drug Overdose Deaths

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• December 20, 2022
• Full Page

Deaths of teens from drug overdoses soared starting in late 2019, and though they appear to be on the decline, they remain much higher than in 2019, U.S. health officials report.

Most of these deaths are due to illegally made fentanyl mixed with other drugs, said study a...

A Vaccine Against Deadly Fentanyl Might Be Near

• Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• November 17, 2022
• Full Page

Researchers report they have created a vaccine to fight fentanyl addiction, in a potential breakthrough in the opioid epidemic.

The shot would block the ability of fentanyl to enter the brain and cause the “high” that users crave. It could be used to prevent relapses...

Deadly 'Rainbow Fentanyl' Looks Like Candy, Could Entice Kids

• By Sydney Murphy HealthDay Reporter
• September 1, 2022
• Full Page

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is warning the public that colorfully dyed fentanyl — dubbed "rainbow fentanyl" — is readily available across the United States.

“Rain...

Brain Study Shows How Fentanyl Kills

• By Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• August 31, 2022
• Full Page

Fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that's driving a surge in drug overdose deaths, kills by stopping breathing even before someone loses consciousness, a new study reveals.

To come to that conclusion, res...

Meth Plays Big Role in Drug ODs in Rural America

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• August 16, 2022
• Full Page

Methamphetamine is driving an epidemic of drug overdoses in rural America, a new study concludes.

Researchers attribute the surge to meth laced with fentanyl or combined with an opioid tha...

Wave of Opioid Overdoses Expected to Hit U.S. Rural, Urban Areas

• By Cara Murez HealthDay Reporter
• July 29, 2022
• Full Page

Experts predict opioid overdoses will climb in both rural and urban areas because of the l...

Pandemic Brought Surge in Fatal Drug Overdoses in U.S. Teens

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• April 12, 2022
• Full Page

Drug overdose deaths among America's teens have skyrocketed during the pandemic, and not because drug use is more common, researchers report.

In 2020, overdose deaths among adolescents nearly doubled, compared with 10 years before the pandemic. They rose another 20% in t...

Police Records Show Use of Illegal Fentanyl-Laced Pills Soaring

• By Robert Preidt HealthDay Reporter
• March 31, 2022
• Full Page

Dovetailing with a surge in overdose deaths, the United States has seen a sharp rise in seizures of illicit fentanyl, according to a new report.

Law enforceme...

As Fentanyl Overdoses Rise, So Does Use of 'Party Drug' Test Strips

• February 18, 2022
• Full Page

Potent and poisonous, the synthetic opioid known as fentanyl has infiltrated nearly every corner of the U.S. illegal street drug market, experts warn.

In the process, it's killing addicts and recreati...

Opioid Addiction Treatment in Jail Could Change Lives

• Robert Preidt
• January 19, 2022
• Full Page

No magic bullet exists for ending the U.S. opioid crisis, but there's hopeful news for one high-risk population: Providing addiction medication in jails reduces the odds of addicts being re-arrested after their release, new research shows.

"Studies like this provide much...

U.S. Fentanyl Deaths Soaring, Especially in West

• Ernie Mundell HealthDay Reporter
• December 14, 2021
• Full Page

Synthetic forms of the potentially lethal opioid fentanyl are flooding the illicit drug market, leaving a soaring number of fatal overdoses in their wake, a new U.S. report finds.

The latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finds that between...

Over 100,000 Americans Died From Drug Overdoses in One Year: Report

• Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter
• November 17, 2021
• Full Page

New government data confirms what many have suspected: The pandemic has prompted a record number of drug overdose deaths, with more than 100,000 Americans succumbing to addiction as COVID-19 raged across the country.

That figure is almost 30% higher than the previous yea...

How the COVID Pandemic Made the Opioid Epidemic Worse, Even as Telehealth Helped

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• October 1, 2021
• Full Page

The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken up the U.S. opioid crisis in ways bad and good, increasing the risk of use and overdose but also spurring innovative approaches to treatment.

The pandemic has definitely been linked to an increase in opioid use and overdose deaths, Tufts ...

DEA Warns of Fentanyl in Counterfeit Opioid Pills

• Cara Murez
• September 29, 2021
• Full Page

People buying pills that look like prescription opioid painkillers or stimulants who are not buying them from a licensed pharmacy may be buying a lethal drug, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration warned this week.

This was the first public safety alert the DEA has is...

Fatal ODs From Illicit Tranquilizers Jumped 6-Fold During Pandemic

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• August 26, 2021
• Full Page

Overdose deaths linked to illicit "designer" benzodiazepines have surged in the United States, as underground labs crank out new synthetic variations on prescription tranquilizers like Valium, Xanax and Ativan.

Overdose deaths involving illicit benzos increased more than...

Kids Still Dying From Accidental Exposure to Fentanyl Pain Patches

• Robert Preidt
• July 26, 2021
• Full Page

Accidental exposure to fentanyl pain patches is putting children's lives at risk, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns.

Fentanyl is a powerful opioid pain reliever; so powerful that fentanyl patches are typically only prescribed to patients who require round-the-c...

Drug Makers Reach $26 Billion Deal on Opioid Lawsuits

• Robert Preidt and Ernie Mundell and Robin Foster
• July 22, 2021
• Full Page

A proposed $26 billion settlement on opioid-related lawsuits has been reached with four large drug companies, a group of state attorneys general announced Wednesday.

If enough states sign on to the deal with the country's three major drug distributors -- Cardinal Health,...

People Are Buying Illegal Opioids on the Dark Web

• Robert Preidt
• April 2, 2021
• Full Page

Illegal drug sales on the dark web are common, hard to detect and are fueling America's opioid epidemic, a University of Texas study reveals.

Opioids include prescription painkillers (such as oxycodone) and illegal drugs (such as heroin and fentanyl).

"People are s...

Lockdowns Tied to Temporary Drops in Illicit Drug Seizures

• Robert Preidt
• March 5, 2021
• Full Page

Seizures of illegal drugs fell sharply in the United States during early COVID-19 lockdowns, but spiked once stay-at-home orders eased.

Researchers studied seizures of marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and fentanyl in five locations between March 2019 (a year b...

In Philadelphia, an Animal Tranquilizer Is Driving Deadly Rise in Opioid ODs

• Alan Mozes HealthDay Reporter
• February 3, 2021
• Full Page

Philadelphia is seeing a surge in overdose fatalities involving heroin and/or fentanyl plus an animal tranquilizer not approved for human use, according to a new study.

The tranquilizer -- called xylazine -- is a non-opioid sedative and painkiller approved by the U.S. Fo...

'Iso,' a Deadly New Synthetic Opioid, Has Hit American Streets

• Dennis Thompson
• June 9, 2020
• Full Page

A new synthetic opioid as powerful as fentanyl is causing overdose deaths at an ever-increasing rate, experts warn.

What's worse, the designer drug is legal in most places in the United States.

Isotonitazene -- commonly referred to as "iso" -- is causing a...

Opioid OD Deaths Fall Despite Growing Use of Synthetic Drugs: CDC

• Robert Preidt
• March 19, 2020
• Full Page

Overall, opioid-related deaths in the United States fell 2% between 2017 and 2018, according to newly released data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC said deaths involving prescription opioids were down 13.5%, while heroin-rela...

Obamacare May Have Prevented Many Opioid-Related Deaths

• Amy Norton
• January 10, 2020
• Full Page

The Medicaid expansion brought in by Obamacare may have prevented thousands of deaths from opioid overdoses, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that in U.S. states that expanded their Medicaid programs under the Affordable Care Act, fatal opioid overdoses dipped...

U.S. Saw Big Rise in Meth, Fentanyl Use in 2019

• E.J. Mundell
• January 3, 2020
• Full Page

A study of over 1 million urine drug tests from across the United States shows soaring rates of use of methamphetamines and fentanyl, often used together in potentially lethal ways.

The drug test results came primarily from clinics dealing with primary care, pain man...

One Region Is Being Hit Hardest by U.S. Opioid Crisis

• Dennis Thompson
• October 25, 2019
• Full Page

More people die from drug overdoses in the northeastern U.S. than other regions, making it a major hotbed of the nation's opioid epidemic, a new federal report says.

Fueled mainly by fentanyl and heroin, overdose (OD) deaths are soaring in an area that runs east from...

U.S. Opioid Deaths Take a Small Dip, as Fentanyl Leaves Deadly Mark

• Steven Reinberg
• August 29, 2019
• Full Page

The good news is overdose deaths from opioids in the United States have dropped slightly in 25 states, but here's the bad news: Deaths from fentanyl are still increasing, federal health officials reported Thursday.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control an...

Lethal Deception: Deaths From Cocaine Laced With Fentanyl on the Rise

• E.J. Mundell
• August 8, 2019
• Full Page

Across the United States and Canada, people are buying cocaine only to discover too late that it contains potentially deadly fentanyl, a new report warns.

In one cluster of cases occurring in Fresno, Calif., in January of this year, four people were brought to local ...

Fentanyl Becoming a Deadly Accomplice in Cocaine, Meth Abuse

• Robert Preidt
• May 6, 2019
• Full Page

As if using cocaine or methamphetamines isn't risky enough, new research shows a sharp spike in urine drug tests that are positive for those drugs and the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl.

The findings could provide insight into steeply rising rates of cocai...

Fatal Drug ODs Surging Among Young Americans

• Steven Reinberg
• April 25, 2019
• Full Page

THURSDAY, April 25, 2019 (HealthDay News) -- The cost of America's opioid epidemic just keeps rising, with new research showing that overdose deaths among teens and young adults are soaring.

The death rate from drug overdoses rose from eight in every 100,000 people ...

Overdose Deaths From Fentanyl Soaring: Report

• Steven Reinberg
• March 21, 2019
• Full Page

The number of Americans dying from overdoses of the powerful narcotic fentanyl rose 12-fold in recent years, health officials reported Thursday.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that's hundreds of times more potent than heroin or cocaine. But sometimes drug users don't...

Many Heroin Users Unprepared for Fentanyl OD

• Robert Preidt
• March 12, 2019
• Full Page

Though they know that nearly all heroin is laced with the dangerous synthetic opioid fentanyl, many Baltimore users aren't prepared to prevent or treat fentanyl-related overdoses, a new study finds.

Baltimore has a thriving heroin trade and 1,000 opioid overdose deat...

U.S. Deaths From Suicide, Substance Abuse Reach Record High

• Robert Preidt
• March 5, 2019
• Full Page

Deaths from drugs, alcohol and suicide in the United States hit an all-time high in 2017 -- more than 150,000 in all.

That number was more than double 1999 levels, according to a chilling new analysis of U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data by the Tru...

Opioid Overdose Deaths Quadruple, Centered in 8 States

• Robert Preidt
• February 22, 2019
• Full Page

U.S. opioid overdose deaths have quadrupled in the last two decades, and the highest rates are now seen in eight Eastern states, a new study shows.

Those states are: Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire and Ohio.

The...

FDA Fell Short in Preventing Fentanyl Abuse Crisis, Report Claims

• Dennis Thompson
• February 19, 2019
• Full Page

Drug makers and federal regulators dropped the ball in tracking the use of a potentially deadly fast-acting form of the synthetic opioid fentanyl, putting thousands of patients at risk of a fatal overdose, a new study claims.

Transmucosal Immediate-Release Fentanyl (...

Fatal Drug ODs Soaring Among Middle-Aged Women: CDC

• E.J. Mundell
• January 10, 2019
• Full Page

The rate at which middle-aged American women die from overdoses involving opioids and other drugs nearly quadrupled between 1999 and 2017, new government data shows.

In 1999, about seven out of every 100,000 deaths among U.S. women aged 30 to 64 was caused by a drug ...