Drug Overdose

An analysis of recent drug use in the United States revealed unexpected trends in substances being used in tandem with fentanyl, according to an expert.

The rates of fatal drug overdoses stayed higher than expected in most states from 2020 to 2023 compared with trajectories before 2020, a cross-sectional analysis in JAMA Network Open showed.

Ozempic and similar drugs for diabetes and weight-related conditions were associated with a 40% lower rate of opioid overdose and 50% lower rate of alcohol intoxication in people with opioid and alcohol use disorders, a new study showed.

Fatal and nonfatal drug overdoses experienced “unprecedented” decreases of 10% to 20% from last year, which could be due to factors like increased naloxone availability, according to researchers.

Most Americans feel they would not be ready to help in the event of a drug overdose, according to the results of a recent survey.

Quality testing of three counterfeit semaglutide products found low purity and more measured semaglutide than what was on the label, according to a research letter published in JAMA Network Open.

Few individuals received medications for opioid use disorder or filled a naloxone prescription after a nonfatal drug overdose, despite the benefits of these treatments in reducing the odds for a future fatal overdose, data show.

Drug overdose deaths in the United States decreased in 2023 for the first time in half a decade, preliminary CDC data showed.

The number of pills containing illicit fentanyl that were seized by United States law enforcement in 2023 was 2,300 times greater than the number in 2017, according to a study published in the International Journal of Drug Policy.

Physicians who were notified that a patient of theirs had died of an overdose and received a plan with guidance on what to do in the future were less likely to prescribe opioids, a study showed.