"This opioid crisis has become a fentanyl crisis"

<p class = "canvas-atom-canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The & nbsp;opioid crisis& nbsp; has worsened more and more over the past decade and would cost the US government about $ 100,000 & nbsp;nearly $ 38 billion& nbsp; in lost tax revenue due to & nbsp;loss of employment. "data-reactid =" 15 "> The opioid crisis has worsened over the past decade and would cost the US government nearly $ 38 billion in lost tax revenue as a result of the loss of jobs .

<p class = "web-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "Opiant Pharmaceuticals (OPNT), the original company of Narcan, a drug to suppress overdoses, is developing more effectively nasal nalmefene, a drug to treat overdose of opioids, especially synthetic opioids like fentanyl ,. "data-reactid =" 16 "> Opiant Pharmaceuticals (OPNT), the company behind the overdose drug Narcan, is developing nasal nalmefene, a drug to treat overdose of opioids, particularly synthetic opioids like fentanyl, more effectively.

"This really reflects the fact that this opioid crisis has become a fentanyl crisis," said Roger Crystal, director of Opiant Pharma, at First Trade. "The majority of opioid overdose deaths in 2017 contained fentanyl. And fentanyl, while remaining an opioid, is a different beast. "

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<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "There were 70,237 & nbsp;drug overdose deaths& nbsp; in the United States in 2017. During this period, nearly 30,000 deaths were attributed to synthetic opioids – including fentanyl – which is a & nbsp;increase& nbsp; over 9,000 compared to the previous year, according to CDC data. "data-reactid =" 38 "> In the United States, 70,237 drug overdose deaths have been recorded, with nearly 30,000 deaths attributed to synthetic opioids – including fentanyl – an increase of more than 9,000 compared to the previous year, according to CDC data.

If Opiant Pharma is successful with nasal nalmefene, the number of fentanyl overdose deaths could be significantly reduced. Crystal has described nalmefene as "a type of molecule similar to naloxone," the drug that makes up Narcan. However, he said, "it's more powerful, so it's stronger, and it lasts longer."

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<p class = "web-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "Fentanyl has the ability to prevent a user breathe in less than a minute Merianne Rose Spencer, CDC statistician & nbsp;says NPR& nbsp; that since 2013, "the fatal overdoses involving fentanyl have doubled," increasing at an exponential rate. "" data-reactid = "60"> Fentanyl has the ability to prevent a user from breathing less frequently. ;one minute. Merian, a CDC statistician, Merianne Rose Spencer told NPR that since 2013, "fatal overdoses involving fentanyl have doubled," increasing at an exponential rate.

Although Crystal thinks that Narcan is effective, "what we are learning is that more and more naloxone is needed to initially resuscitate a person who has an opioid overdose, and that naloxone lasts only an hour or two in terms of half-life ".

He added: "[Fentanyl] is 50 times stronger than heroin. This lasts longer than heroin. And, in fact, you must intervene even more quickly than with a heroin overdose. "

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<p class = "canvas-atom web-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "Indeed," fentanyl is more likely to cause a overdose as heroin because it is so powerful and the high dose fades faster than with heroin, "NPR & nbsp;reported. And often, fentanyl is & nbsp;mixed in& nbsp; Heroin without the addict being aware of it. Indeed, "fentanyl is more likely to cause an overdose than heroin because it is so potent and the high dose fades faster than it does." with heroin "According to the NPR, fentanyl is often mixed with heroin without the addict being aware of it.

"The concern is this: can a person, even if initially recovered, potentially fall back into a state of opioid overdose?" Crystal said. "We think [nasal nalmefene] could be promising enough to answer that. "

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<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, SmartNews, LinkedIn, Youtube, and reddit."data-reactid =" 90 ">Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, SmartNews, LinkedIn, Youtube, and reddit.