Drug Overdose Signs and Treatment

Department of Health & Human Services’ Overdose Prevention Strategy to address the public health emergency as it continues to evolve. The overdose crisis is an evolving public health crisis; as such, FDA continues to evaluate our approach and make adjustments according to the latest available science and data. If someone is unresponsive and you know they have taken drugs, don’t assume they are simply asleep. Always call an ambulance if you suspect they might have overdosed – you may save their life. If someone is sick or has a weakened immune system, they are at a higher risk for overdose because their body is weakened. Also, the effects of a long term disease such as HIV or hepatitis can wear down the body and put someone more at risk for an overdose.

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To avoid an alcohol overdose, avoid drinking excessive amounts of alcohol in a short time. Drinking a lot of alcohol in a short time (binge drinking) can rapidly increase the amount of alcohol in the blood. This makes it difficult for the body to remove alcohol from the bloodstream and can harm other body parts. After calling 911, stay with the individual experiencing an alcohol overdose.

• Many people don’t think about alcohol when drug overdoses are mentioned, but it is possible to overdose on alcohol and it is considered a depressant.
• A drug overdose may occur when an individual consumes too much of a substance.
• Poisoning by fentanyl or fentanyl analogs, undetermined, initial encounter.
• Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) is a cooperative agreement that provides funding to 90 health departments under two distinct OD2A programs (State and LOCAL) to reduce drug overdoses and related harms.
• It works by removing the opioids from the receptors in the brain, and overturning their depressive effects.

What Are the Symptoms and Signs of a Drug Overdose?

OD2A focuses on understanding and tracking the complex and changing nature of the drug overdose crisis by seamlessly integrating data and prevention strategies. Many drugs involved in overdose are obtained illegally, particularly in the case of heroin, cocaine, and amphetamines. Other drugs, however, such as benzodiazepines, antidepressants, and opioid pain relievers, are legally available through prescription. Such drugs can be obtained illegally through patient activities such as doctor shopping (visiting multiple health care providers to obtain multiple prescriptions), stockpiling of medications, pharmacy fraud, and theft.

What Is the Medical Treatment for a Drug Overdose?

In overdose, side effects become more pronounced, and other effects can take place, which would not occur with normal use. Large overdoses of some medications cause only minimal effects, while smaller overdoses of other medications can cause severe effects, possibly death. A single dose of some medications can be lethal to a young child. To prevent drug overdose from prescription medications, only take the prescribed dose. Follow a doctor or pharmacist’s directions for taking any prescription.

Overdose Symptoms to Watch Out For

She has a Master’s degree, undergraduate degrees in English and Sociology, a diploma in Holistic Herbal Therapy, and is trained in mental health first aid, anti-violence work, and peer support work. This article will explain what an overdose is, the signs and symptoms of overdose to watch for in yourself and others, and what to do in case of an overdose. Additionally, we support the Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Program, which is the nation’s leading effort to support communities working to prevent youth substance use.

• They will also monitor the patient’s vital signs and work to improve them, if necessary.
• Stopping drug use is just one part of a long and complex recovery process.
• Where manner of injury is defined, only diagnosis codes for “unintentional” or “undetermined” intent drug poisoning are included in the DOSE standardized syndromic surveillance definitions.
• If people stop following their medical treatment plan, they are likely to relapse.

Higher buprenorphine doses associated with improved retention in treatment for opioid use disorder

A doctor can help recognize the signs of drug overdose and provide treatment recommendations. For example, overdosing on opioids adversely affects an individual’s ability to breathe. This lack of oxygen can cause organ damage, unconsciousness, and even death. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate that 106,699 people died of a drug overdose in the United States in 2021. A drug overdose may occur when an individual consumes too much of a substance. Opioids, stimulants, and other substances can all cause an overdose.

Major support for overcoming drug overdose and addiction comes from therapy sessions. Therapy is integrated into inpatient and outpatient treatment programs. The exact type of therapy varies, but in most cases, patients receive cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), individual counseling, group counseling, and medication-assisted treatment (MAT). Symptoms of drug overdose are greatly determined by the substances abused. The OD symptoms are particularly severe in persons who abuse two or more substances. The most common signs and symptoms of overdose are listed below.

For example, if someone has other heart problems such as high blood pressure or heart disease, they are at a higher risk for a stimulant-related overdose heart attack or stroke. Opioids, such as fentanyl, tramadol and morphine, are commonly used for the treatment of severe pain.6  They are generally safe when taken for a short time and as prescribed by a healthcare provider. However, if opioids become an addiction, misuse can lead to overdose.

This can potentially cause a drug overdose: definition, treatment, prevention, and more fatal heart attack, seizure or stroke. An opioid overdose is dangerous because it affects the part of the brain that regulates breathing. It can lead to a slowing or stopping of breathing – and the person having the overdose will go into oxygen starvation. This will eventually stop the vital organs such as the brain and the heart, which will lead to unconsciousness, coma and then death. If someone you care about is using drugs, you may be worried about their risk of overdosing and wondering how you can help them.

During the first several months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of total ED visits across the United States substantially declined; however, nonfatal overdoses did not decline at a similar pace. When it comes to cocaine, a 2008 paper by Heard et al., from The Open Pharmacology Journal reported that at high concentrations, this drug alters pathways in the brain. At the same time, cocaine binds to sodium and potassium channels. Finally, in the elderly population, 55 years and older, drug overdose cases aren’t uncommon. In 1999, there were 518 drug overdose deaths in this age group, whereas that number in 2019 increased to 10,292, as per a 2022 study by Mason et al., published in JAMA Network Open.