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ST. LOUIS (AP) – Synthetic fentanyl is behind the near-record number of drug overdose deaths in the St. Louis area this year.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the very powerful painkiller is involved in almost all deaths due to an opioid overdose in St. Louis and surrounding areas.
Brandon Costerison, of the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Addiction, said the city and county of St. Louis were on the verge of experiencing a record number of overdose deaths this year. The Saint Louis region recorded a record 760 opioid-related deaths last year.
Methamphetamine resumes: hospitalization increases while drug is overshadowed by opioids]
Costerison says that fentanyl has been identified in nearly 95% of overdose deaths in St. Louis. It is well above the national average that fentanyl was involved in almost half of drug overdose cases in the country last year.
Fentanyl can be mixed or sold without knowing it with heroin, cocaine or methamphetamines.
Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com
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