Fentanyl: Separating Facts From Fiction
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@George-K said in More on fentanyl ODs:
There was a story all over the news yesterday about a cop who was supposedly exposed to fentanyl and needed three (3!) doses of Narcan to save her life. When I saw the story, I immediately called BS.
Don't Let Police, Media Mislead You About Fentanyl Exposure Overdoses
Once again, media outlets are rushing to sow panic by blindly accepting a police department's claims that an officer may have accidentally overdosed by being in close physical proximity to fentanyl, reinforcing the false message that you can potentially overdose on the drug even if you don't intentionally consume it.
This time we head to Tavares, Florida, where the Tavares Police Department distributed to the local press body camera footage of Officer Courtney Bannick appearing to collapse and pass out after encountering what turned out to be fentanyl and meth in a rolled-up dollar bill she found in a routine traffic stop.
Local news outlets lapped it up (the story, not the fentanyl) and the video footage ran on WESH (the local NBC affiliate), FOX 35, and elsewhere. In none of the initial stories does anybody so much as question whether what they're seeing is actually being caused by exposure to fentanyl. The officer was wearing gloves, but it was windy, and police argue that it's possible she breathed the fentanyl in. Officers on the scene say they gave her three doses of Narcan. They brought her to the hospital, where she fully recovered. She is now fine.
The Tavares Police Department is very clear that it's releasing the body camera footage for the purpose of scaring people about fentanyl.
"Officer Bannick really wants others to take away that this drug is dangerous," Tavares Detective Courtney Sullivan told WESH. "It's dangerous for not only yourself but others around you. Something as simple as the wind could expose you and just like that, your life could end."
This just isn't true. Add it to the pile of many, many examples of police attempting to convince the public that any possible exposure to fentanyl may be deadly. It does not simply pass through the skin when you touch it. As for the claim that the officer might have inhaled it, a study from the American College of Medical Toxicology and American Academy of Clinical Toxicology calculated that a person would have to stand next to a massive amount of fentanyl for two and a half hours to feel its effects.
In other words, based on what we know about fentanyl exposure, it is extremely unlikely that what we saw was Bannick overdosing from inhaling fentanyl in a gust of wind.
Obviously something happened—possibly a panic attack brought on by all the insistence that any exposure to fentanyl is potentially deadly. FOX 35 did revisit the story Wednesday with a vague "some say" approach, taking note that there is an "ongoing debate between law enforcement and some in the medical community who say it's nearly impossible to overdose on fentanyl at crime scenes." This is not a "debate." Police keep making claims that medical experts overwhelmingly say are not true.
FOX 35 tracked down a doctor who said that it was, in fact, possible that Bannick could have inhaled fentanyl during that short period of exposure and overdosed. That doctor is not identified and does not appear in the segment.
The good news is that people are publicly pushing back on stories like this. Tweets put out by overly credulous journalists are quickly responded to by people who point out the unlikelihood of what happened.
And yet the story persists. Perhaps police departments believe that these warnings will discourage people from meddling with drugs. They are the ones that respond to these overdose calls and see the impacts. It's clear the Tavares police are hoping that this footage will serve as a public warning.
But when the claims being put forth by the police are easily countered by medical professionals, their efforts are completely undermined and they look less credible. The same holds true for local media outlets.
Whatever the solution to our overdose crisis may be, it's not misleading the public.
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More Crap:
11 Camden County officers treated for fentanyl exposure after search, 5 suspects in custody
Camden County officials announce the arrest of five men in connection with fentanyl and cocaine possession and manufacturing, while 11 officers were exposed to fentanyl in the process of search warrants being executed and required medical treatment.
According to authorities, officers executed search warrants at an apartment on the 1000 block of Harrison Avenue, in Collingswood and at a residence on Eden Hollow Lane in Sicklerville January 12.
While executing the search warrant, officials say, 11 officers at the Collingswood address were exposed to fentanyl and required medical treatment. HAZMAT teams from Cherry Hill and Camden County were called to the Collingswood scene to assist.
According to authorities, 49-year-old Ali Cole, of Sicklerville, was reportedly trying to destroy evidence at the Collingswood address when the search warrant was executed. Coles was arrested and charged.
Isn't it interesting how none of the suspects were affected, but 11 cops were?
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Speaking of which...
I'm really tired of politicians and talking heads pronouncing it "fentanol."
FFS - ask someone.
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What bullshit.
The perp got fentanyl powder on his hands and...nothing happened.
The cop was exposed to "a small amount of fentanyl" and was taken to the hospital after "passing out" and was released.
"Police officer hospitalized!!"
Yeah, I suppose you can say a visit to an ER and a discharge qualifies as "hospitalized."
THAT'S NOT HOW FENTANYL WORKS, you assholes.
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Tania the Herbalist gives us her (?) opinion on fentanyl.
The thread is a hoot.
Best comment:
"Hey Tania, did you know that there is also bupivacaine, a synthetic local anesthetic used in epidurals (as opposed to cocaine which is a naturally occurring alkaloid LA). Also, fentanyl is the most commonly used narcotic in the operating room used in almost every single case."
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The Pernicious Myth of Fentanyl-Laced Cannabis
Ohio coroner Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco was quoted at a press conference saying that “we have seen fentanyl mixed with cocaine, we have also seen fentanyl mixed with marijuana.” In a follow-up piece in Vice, Sammarco clarified that she had, in fact, not seen evidence of fentanyl-contaminated cannabis, but was instead repeating something that her co-presenter, US Senator Rob Portman, had told her before that presser—and she didn’t know where he sourced his information. Further reporting found no good evidence of fentanyl-laced bud, and instead only speculation, the suspicions of anxious parents and social media hearsay.
Even in cases where someone dies of fentanyl poisoning and postmortem drug tests are positive for THC, chances are high that these drugs were used separately. THC famously lingers in the body’s fat for days or weeks, resulting in positive THC tests well after the last use of the substance.
What about oral fentanyl?
Fentanyl in particular is low-risk if eaten because it doesn’t work well when given orally. While there are formulations of fentanyl that are absorbed through the inside of the cheek or under the tongue, when swallowed it’s heavily broken down by our liver before the drug has a chance to get to the brain. As such, fentanyl isn’t manufactured as a pill or liquid to swallow.
What about fentanyl vapes?
Fentanyl’s boiling point is 466℃, or about 871℉. For comparison, I consulted the sites for two popular brands of vape used for cannabis: Pax and Grenco. Pax states that the hottest temperature reached by its products is 210℃. Grenco, maker of the G Pen, states that the highest setting of this device gets to 220℃.
This makes sense, as the boiling points for the desirable compounds in cannabis, like THC, CBD and the many terpenes, don’t exceed this temperature. An excessively hot device could potentially release harmful compounds, but would also be less pleasant for the user and run down the battery more quickly. So while fentanyl can be vaped, it needs high heat to get there, and the devices used to vape cannabis simply don’t get that hot.
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Jesus, this crap continues...
An East St. Louis police officer and two EMS workers responding to a possible overdose call ended up in a hospital emergency room after they were exposed to fentanyl, according to Police Chief Kendall Perry.
The incident happened on Sunday afternoon, June 18, at a home in the 800 block of Bre-Mar Drive, where a man in his 60s was reported to have overdosed on fentanyl, a potent synthetic opioid.
“There was quite a bit of it on scene,” Perry said. “One of our officers ended up getting exposed to it and had to be transported to Memorial Hospital.”
When police arrived at the home, they found the man responsive but confused. “He refused medical treatment” Perry said.
Besides the officer, Perry confirmed that two EMS workers who were exposed to the fentanyl on scene had to be taken to the hospital. The officer and workers were treated and released.
Perry said agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration now have the substance. “It was fentanyl, possibly mixed with meth,” Perry said.
The chief did not release the names of the officer or EMS workers who were exposed to the drugs.
Officer Tia Mitchell of the East St. Louis Police Department confirmed to the BND that she had to go to the hospital after exposure to the drugs.
She said she was given Narcan twice, once by a co-worker and a second time by a paramedic on scene. Narcan is a life-saving drug that can be used to resuscitate people who have overdosed on opioids.
The East St. Louis Fire Department also was at the scene and hosed the officer down before she was taken to the hospital, Perry said.
Mitchell told the BND she was exposed to the fentanyl when a woman who had been in the residence brought it outside in a Ziplock bag.
Mitchell said she blacked out so she doesn’t remember too much about the incident. But she said she is grateful to her fellow officer who had Narcan with him.
“Thank God for Narcan. If he didn’t have it with him, we don’t know what would’ve happen,” Mitchell said
Asked whether officers carry Narcan on them routinely, Mitchell said not that she’s aware of.
She said she feels it should be required and provided by the police department in all squad cars “for our safety and the safety of the citizens if they are overdosing.”
Narcan is provided to all officers, said Perry, the chief. Each officer gets at least two boxes that they can carry with them, he said.
Perry said that while officers are not required to carry Narcan, he believes that it is important that they have it. When they run out, they can come to the office for more, the chief said.
Mitchell said she had to seek additional medical evaluation after she was treated and released from the hospital’s emergency room and is still off work.
“This is not an easy thing to go through,” Mitchell said.
In 40 years of popping open fentanyl ampules, probably spilling some on my skin, I'm shocked that I lived long enough to retire.
Twitter doc: "First responder hosed down by fire department and given multiple doses of narcan after approached by person with fentanyl in a ziploc baggie. Person carrying the baggie apparently some kind of magical fentanyl resistant zombie."
