United States: The state medical examiners have observed another deadly drug – the drugs laced with fentanyl, but Xylazine, as observed, is very different this time.
The deputies said that as a result of fake prescription pills, people who look to buy fentanyl-laced drugs are discovering them to be laced with that drug instead.
However, for the first time in more than a decade is reported, as per the latest report from the state examiner’s office, a small dip in fentanyl-related overdose deaths, CBS12 News reports.
Presence of Xylazine in various overdose deaths
2022 was the first year in the history of Florida when all medical examiners would have to include a notation in the autopsy when Xylazine is involved.
The final report, released earlier this month, stated the use of drug in as many as 471 deaths due to overdose.
During the same time period, a Xylazine-related death was officially recorded only twice along the Treasure Coast. However, exactly 44 people in Palm Beach County who died from Xylazine found that this drug was in their system, reported CBS12 News.
Know more about Xylazine
Xylazine, often referred to as “Tranq,” is actually administrated to sedate large livestock, whereas drug traffickers are using it as a cheap substitute for other addictive drugs.
Martin County Sheriff’s Deputy Chief Jon Budensiek stated, “Xylazine most closely mimics a heroin or fentanyl overdose. So, these drug traffickers, in order to maximize their profits, have mixed a white powdery substance, Xylazine, with fentanyl, and it’s sold here on our streets, unfortunately,” reported CBS12 News.
Why Narcan, an anti-over drug dose, doesn’t work on xylazine overdoses?
However, as per the experts, unlike fentanyl, Narcan doesn’t perform on xylazine overdoses.
As per Budensiek, “While we think we’re responding to a fentanyl overdose or a heroin overdose, we start administering Narcan, we can’t turn these overdoses around and therefore, there’s nothing that we can do,” and, “They won’t notice that anything’s wrong until they overdose, and their friends will notice that, they won’t until they overdose and they can’t be resuscitated.”
Moreover, in a few cases, the deputies confirm people are using Xylazine because of the reaction visible on their skin.
Budensiek added, “Where these users are injecting, it actually kills the skin cells, and then it kills the meat underneath the skin, so their body essentially starts rotting away real time, you can see it. And they know something’s wrong, but unfortunately, the addiction overrides their ability to stop taking the drugs,” CBS12 News reported.
Despite being ineffective in addressing overdoses from Xylazine, law enforcement suggests giving Narcan anyway.
Given a situation where someone is overdosing on drugs like fentanyl, it’s likely that the individual could be alive and being rescued by a naloxone-equipped drug dealer.
In the past year, the sheriff’s deputies in Martin County have documented three overdose deaths resulting from a combination of Xylazine and fentanyl.