The lifesaving medication rescuing and reversing an opioid overdose

Beating an opioid addiction is tough with no easy solutions but one way to at least reverse an opioid overdose saving a life is with a medication called naloxone. 

The growing numbers of Americans becoming addicted to opioids through long-term use or misuse of prescription painkillers continues to be a problem.  More than 42,200 Americans died from opioid overdoses in 2016, victims of the rise of a powerful synthetic opioid called fentanyl, which is 30 to 50 times more potent than heroin.

Understanding what is naloxone

Last week, U.S. Surgeon, Dr. Jerome Adams, issued a public health advisory urging more Americans to have on hand a supply of naloxone. This is the same medication used by first responders, emergency medical technicians, and police officers who have given it to help revive people who are suspected of an opioid overdose. 

Naloxone works by blocking opiate receptor sites reversing the effects of an overdose helping to restore a normal breathing pattern.  This drug can be administered either as a nasal spray, known by the brand name Narcan, or as an injection, sold as Evzio.  Evzio, sold over-the-counter, is an auto-injectable device already pre-filled with naloxone used to inject into the thigh of someone who is overdosing.  

Staying alive

Anyone who has fallen prey to the opioid crisis and wants to get clean, most likely will not be able to do it without outside help or medications.  Many will not succeed at their first attempt and will likely have to take these medications for years if not the rest of their life.  Beating a drug addiction is a process taking time and they will experience ups and downs as they struggle to stay away from opioids lure. 

If they relapse and start using opioids again, there is always the danger of an opioid overdose.  By providing information on naloxone to the public, more people may stay alive so that family members or people using opioids can have the medication on hand to use it right away reversing an overdose and possible death. 

Rehab helps but doesn’t work by itself

For people who are addicted to opioids, short-term rehab or detox programs used to help wean them off the drugs without assistance from medications, often fall short. People using these programs trying to break free from opioids have a staggering relapse rate of 80 to 90 percent within 90 days.

There is also the risk of an increased risk of an overdose since their body’s tolerance to opioids is lower than when they withdraw from them.  The danger lies in that when they leave rehab and if they relapse and go back to taking the same dose they were used to, they will not only get high but are more likely die from it.

Many experts are stating that opioid addiction is a lifelong condition and is not considered necessarily a curable illness.  This is an addictive disorder the person will have to deal with the rest of their life and like most chronic illnesses, they will require medication.  During the process if they were to relapse by going back to using opioids and overdose, at least having naloxone readily available and on hand can help reduce unnecessary deaths related to opioid use. 

Buying naloxone

At this time, all 50 states have passed laws to expand access to naloxone and most states have Good Samaritan laws to protect people who give someone naloxone during an opioid overdose emergency.  There is also an Opioid Overdose Toolkit offered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration along with other government websites offering more information about naloxone’s side effects and access. 

Even though naloxone is a prescription drug, in most states a person who are at risk for overdosing or know someone who is can get it without a prescription.  Most insurance plans cover naloxone in addition to many community-based organizations or public health programs which provide the drug for free. 

To find resources on where to find naloxone, the National Institute on Drug Abuse has a naloxone finder in which people can enter their city or zip code to find overdose prevention programs that may offer it for free.