Carfentanil, the most potent commercial opioid in the world, is making its way into the U.S. drug supply, causing a string of accidental overdoses and deaths.
Here are six things to know about the drug:
- Carfentanil is 10,000 times stronger than morphine. As a reference, fentanyl, the powerful opioid linked to Prince's death, is 50 times more powerful than morphine, reported CNN.
- The synthetic opioid is not approved for human use, but is used commercially to sedate large animals. A 2 milligram dose of carfentanil can knock out a 2,000 pound elephant. Veterinarians who handle the drug wear protective gloves, masks and aprons, as it can be lethal even when absorbed through the skin, according to The Washington Post.
- Just 10 milligrams of the drug — less than the weight of a paper clip — could kill 500 people, reported The Wasington Post.
- Drug dealers are cutting carfentanil into heroin to stretch supply and produce a more intense, longer high, according to the Drug Enforcement Agency. Often, users do not even know they are taking the drug, reported CNN.
- Ohio is feeling the impacts of carfentanil the most. In July, Hamilton County officials issued a public health warning about the drug after 35 overdoses and six deaths occurred within a three-day period, according to CNN.
- Usually, one or two shots of the anti-overdose drug naloxone can counteract a heroin overdose, said The Washington Post. For a carfentanil overdose,a minimum of six shots are necessary.
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