Naloxone Reverses Opiate Drug Overdoses

Drug overdose from heroin or pain medicine happens more often than you’d think.

Fred, a young heroin addict, had been dependent upon heroin for a number of years and socialized with peers who also abused substances. He once told me of the overdose of a friend, Abby. Abby accidentally overdosed on heroin presumably at home, because her mother called Fred for help. Her mother knew that Fred could help because he had possession of Naloxone, also known as Narcan, an opiate overdose reversal medication. He rushed to her home and administered Naloxone which did in fact reverse the overdose and saved her life. Although he is the hero in this story, he was angry that he was called. If he had not gotten there in time Abby could have easily died or suffered brain damage. He did not want the weight of that responsibility and would have preferred that she called 911 who also carries Naloxone.

Why wouldn’t she want to call 911? Abby, and her mother, would not have wanted to bring attention to herself for fear of incarceration. If the police came to her residence and found evidence of illegal drug use, she would likely be arrested.

There is a Good Samaritan Law in some states that provide immunity from arrest for people who call for help at the scene of an overdose. These laws do not protect people from arrest for selling or trafficking drugs, or from driving while drugged. But Good Samaritan laws do protect the caller and overdose victim from arrest for drug possession or being under the influence of a substance. Abby’s state of Iowa does not offer the protection of the Good Samaritan Law.

I surveyed a group of ten people who are in treatment for addiction to heroin or pain killers. Among these ten people, they had experienced eleven overdoses. When asked how many overdoses they had witnessed or known of among their peer group, they counted more than sixty. When asked how many of those overdoses resulted in death, they counted twenty-two.

Overdoses are not limited to people who abuse substances. It can occur when a patient takes their prescribed pain killer as directed, but the prescriber miscalculated the dose, or the pharmacist made an error, or the patient misunderstood the directions for use. Some people are at risk who combine pain killers with alcohol, or other medications.

So what is Naloxone and how does it help? It is a narcotic antagonist which displaces opiates from receptor sites in the brain and reverses respiratory depression that is usually the cause of overdose deaths. It is only effective for an opiate overdose, not for overdoses from substances such as cocaine, benzodiazepine or methamphetamine. It has been used by emergency medical services for more than 40 years.

Until recently, doctors have been hesitant to prescribe Naloxone for fear of being held responsible of misuse or death. However, they are now held harmless. Naloxone, and training on how to use it, is available by prescription to anyone who wants to have it on hand in case of emergencies. Although it is available, it can be costly.

Overdose related deaths can be prevented when Naloxone is administered in a timely manner.

Although Abby had participated in drug treatment, she relapsed after dropping out. Sadly, we heard this year that Abby died of another drug overdose.