Prince’s Death Spotlights Overdose Antidote Dilemma
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Six days before he died, the 57-year-old musician overdosed on the painkiller Percocet while on a flight, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing in Moline, Ill., a law-enforcement official said. Hospital staff revived him with a dose of naloxone, also known as Narcan.
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But despite greater access to the rescue drug, first responders and health officials around the U.S. say they are frustrated that the same people saved from death with naloxone can succumb quickly to yet another, sometimes fatal, overdose.
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Prescription opioids—like Vicodin, Percocet and OxyContin—affect the brain and the nervous system to relieve pain, typically between four and 12 hours, and can be highly addictive. But taken in excessive amounts, these drugs can suppress a person’s breathing until it eventually stops. One or more doses of naloxone, by injection or nasal spray, knock the opioids off their receptors in the brain, generally restoring breathing within minutes to prevent brain damage or save a life. Naloxone begins to wear off in about 30 minutes and may be largely gone after 90 minutes.
But the window of time immediately following revival with naloxone is particularly difficult for opioid addicts. Naloxone can trigger almost immediate, brutal withdrawal symptoms, including sweating and vomiting caused by the body’s craving for opioids. Some addicts treated with naloxone turn combative, and may even seek opioids again to calm themselves and stave off withdrawal symptoms.
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Some communities hit hard by the opioid crisis are launching new programs aimed at connecting revived addicts with recovery services as soon as possible after an overdose.
In Camden County, N.J., officials launched a program this year aimed at redressing two problems: the tendency of rescued addicts to leave the emergency department without a referral to treatment, and the difficulty in finding inpatient facilities quickly for those who do want it. Under the program, which received $150,000 in funding from the county, users who were revived by naloxone are offered recovery services while still in the hospital. If they agree, the county will pay for them to receive outpatient treatment—usually involving counseling and either methadone or buprenorphine, drugs used to wean addicts off opioids—until a spot at an inpatient center becomes available.
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http://www.wsj.com/articles/princes-death-spotlights-overdose-antidote-dilemma-1462959001
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