Beware of the 'Russian Roulette' drug

Friday 09 December 2016

Local drug treatment officials yesterday warned the public of the possibly lethal danger of abusing the prescription drug fentanyl.

The powerful painkiller was this week linked to the death of a 42-year-old local woman at an inquest into her death. While often prescribed for pain relief via transdermal patches, fentanyl - which is 100 times stronger than heroin - can be co-opted and used as a very dangerous street drug with a razor-thin threshold for overdose.

Abuse of the drug has been prominently linked to the death of pop star Prince.

Yesterday, Director for Alcohol and Drug Services Mike Gafoor told the Bailiwick Express fentanyl can be considered "the most dangerous drug" if injected.

While he said abuse of the drug in Jersey appears to be on the decline, he warned that no-one should be injecting it.

"Fentanyl is around 100 times stronger than heroin and since there is no way of knowing the strength of the dose being injected, it is playing Russian Roulette with one’s life," Mr Gafoor said.

He added: “Following a spate of Fentanyl related deaths in Jersey (in) 2006, safeguards were introduced to reduce the number of Fentanyl prescriptions issued by GPs, such as to avoid prescribing it to people with a history of drug misuse unless there is evidence (of) organic disease or injury. In addition, doctors were advised to limit the number of patches issued with each prescription."

Since then, there has been a marked reduction in the availability of Fentanyl on the streets and a corresponding decline in deaths associated with the drug.

When sold as a street drug, Detective Inspector Craig Jackson of the States Police said fentanyl is generally in its transdermal patch form. These patches will have been diverted from legal medical prescriptions.

He told the Bailiwick Express that fentanyl manufacturers have altered the prescription drug to make abuse more difficult.

"Fentanyl is subject to diversion for use by opiate based addicts," he said. "Historically it was easy to extract the morphine from the patch, and for it to be intravenously taken, rather than slow release. Manufacturers have changed the production and it is harder to misuse," he said. "I say harder but not impossible."

In addition to the danger of fatal overdose, injecting the drug can cause horrible after-effects.

"Other complications associated with injecting the drug include abscesses, thrombosis and collapsed veins," Mr Gafoor said. "We strongly urge people to avoid injecting Fentanyl and to seek professional help by contacting the Alcohol and Drug Service on 445000.”