LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The Southern Nevada Health District announced on Tuesday that a tranquilizer linked to overdose deaths across the US has been detected in Clark County.
The discovery came as a part of the district’s community surveillance program, where drug paraphernalia is anonymously collected and sampled. According to the district, 502 samples have been collected since December 2022.
Additionally, health officials noted that methamphetamine was detected in 53.7% of samples, while heroin was detected in 38.9%.
So far, the district has registered three overdose deaths involving xylazine in 2023, up from the one registered death in 2020. Deaths involving fentanyl have increased by 561% and those involving meth have increased by 57.4% from 2018 to 2023.
Xylazine is only approved for veterinary use and is not approved for human consumption. It can be life-threatening and is especially dangerous when combined with opioids, such as fentanyl. The use of xylazine can cause drowsiness, amnesia, blood sugar abnormalities, slowed breathing, slowed heartbeat, dangerously low blood pressure, wounds that can become infected, and death.
Officials also note that naloxone, or Narcan, will not reverse the effects of xylazine.
To learn more about xylazine go to https://harmreduction.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Xylazine-inthe-Drug-Supply-one-pager.pdf. People who are using substances, or their loved ones, can get more information about support and resources at https://behavioralhealthnv.org/.
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