Characterizing fentanyl-related overdoses and implications for overdose response: Findings from a rapid ethnographic study in Vancouver, Canada

North America is experiencing an opioid overdose crisis (Dart et al., 2015), which has, in part, been driven by changes to the illicit opioid supply, involving the proliferation of illicitly-manufactured fentanyl, related analogues, and fentanyl-adulterated opioids (Gladden, 2016; Rudd et al., 2016; Suzuki and El-Haddad, 2017). Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid and is the main component of over 20 analogues and by volume approximately 80-100 times more potent than morphine (Burns et al., 2016) and 30-50 times more potent than heroin (Ciccarone, 2017).
Source: Drug and Alcohol Dependence - Category: Addiction Authors: Source Type: research