City of Revere Opioid Overdose Warning: Support Is Available
April 6, 2016
The City of Revere Board of Health is issuing an advisory regarding a recent increase in opioid-related overdoses. This increase is reportedly linked to the use of heroin contaminated with the drug fentanyl. This past weekend, there were three unconfirmed opioid overdose fatalities.
The Revere Board of Health encourages emergency response services, health care providers, substance abuse treatment services providers, public safety first responders, and the public to exercise increased vigilance in promptly identifying suspected overdose patients and taking appropriate action.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that most overdose instances resulting from fentanyl use occur because of the mixture of fentanyl with heroin in a powdered form. Unmixed fentantl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, but iwth the addition of heroin, its effects are even greater. The mixture can increase chances of an overdose as well as the severity of fentanyl overdose symptoms. This makes it even more important that bystanders who associate with those using fentanyl be able to recognize the signs and symptoms of an overdose to prevent severe injury, and possibly death.
Signs and symptoms of fentanyl overdose are consistent with opioid overdose and include: unconsciousness and unresponsiveness; respiratory depression or arrest; cyanosis; vomiting; and pinpoint pupils. Overdoses can be treated on site with Naoloxone, aka Narcan. Naoloxone is an opioid antagonist that temporarily works by blocking opiate receptor sites in the brain, allwing the person to be transported to the hospital for further treatment. With fentanyl-laced heroin, multiple applications of Naoloxone are often necessary to reverse an overdose.
Support is available.
Training is available to those actively using and their families on how to prevent, recognize, and intervene during an opioid overdose using Naloxone through the City of Revere's Substance Use Prevention Initiatives, a weekly Drop-In Center every Tuesday evening from 5-8 PM at 265 Beach Street, Revere, MA 02151. Training and other support is available to everyone free of charge. No appointment necessary. For more information, contact Julia Newhall:
Office: 781-286-8171
Mobile: 339-440-7950
Email: jnewhall@revere.org