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Welcome to our blog we will be discussing the history of fentanyl, overdose and death, how to stay safe and medication assisted treatment (MAT).
History
According to Oxford Academic in a journal Clinical Chemistry Volume 65 issue 2 "The use of opium can be dated back to the third millennium BC. Morphine (after Morpheus, the god of dreams) was isolated by 1806 (1). By the 1850s, morphine was being used for general anesthesia and pain relief (1, 2). In search of a more effective alternative, scientists at Janssen Pharmaceutica developed highly potent opioids, including fentanyl, phenoperidine, sufentanil, alfentanil, remifentanil, and carfentanil. Fentanyl has been used as an intraoperative anesthetic since the 1960s and for chronic pain management in contemporary medicine. Sufentanil, alfentanil, and remifentanil are also clinically used fentanyl analogs (FAs)" (2019) .
In an article Medical News Today, everything you need to know about fentanyl it states, "as a prescription, fentanyl is available under the brand name Actiq, which is a throat lozenge, or Duragesic, a patch placed on the skin. If a person is hospitalized or undergoing surgery, a healthcare professional may administer fentanyl as an injection called Sublimaze" (2024).
According to the National Library of Medicine about fentanyl states, "biochemically, it is a Mu-selective opioid agonist. However, it has the capability to activate other opioid system receptors such as the delta and potentially the kappa-receptors. Consequently, the activation of these receptors, particularly the Mu-receptors, produces analgesia. Also, the neurotransmitter dopamine (Da) is increased in the reward areas of the brain, which elicits the stereotypical exhilaration and relaxation effects, and is typically associated with the addiction to the drug" (2023).
How fentanyl triggered the deadliest drug epidemic in U.S. history. Video 1:55 min Washington Post
What is the effect on the body?
The Drug Enforcement Department Fentanyl Fact Sheet explains, "similar to other commonly used opioid analgesics (e.g., morphine), produces effects such as relaxation, euphoria, pain relief, sedation, confusion, drowsiness, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, urinary retention, pupillary constriction, and respiratory depression. What are the overdose effects?" (2022).
"What are the overdose effects? Overdose may result in stupor, changes in pupillary size, cold and clammy skin, cyanosis, coma, and respiratory failure leading to death. The presence of a triad of symptoms such as coma, pinpoint pupils, and respiratory depression are strongly suggestive of opioid poisoning" (2022).
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