Fentanyl is involved in the majority of overdose deaths in St. Louis

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 analgesic is involved in almost all opioid overdose deaths 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.

Costerison says that fentanyl has been identified in 95% of overdose deaths in St. Louis. This is well above the national average where fentanyl was involved in almost half of drug overdose cases in Canada last year.

Fentanyl can be mixed or sold without knowing it with heroin, cocaine or methamphetamines.
___
Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch