Is Fentanyl A Narcotic?

Fentanyl, sold under brand names Duragesic, Sublimaze, Actiq, and others, is a commonly prescribed synthetic opioid that’s around 100 times stronger than morphine.

While this powerful pain management drug plays an important role in treating severe pain and chronic pain (and cancer pain in particular), it is also considered to be the deadliest narcotic in the United States illicit drug trade.

Fentanyl As A Narcotic

The term narcotic, which shares the same root as the term narcolepsy, originally referred to any psychoactive compound with numbing or paralyzing properties.

However, in modern usage, narcotic has overwhelmingly come to refer to illicitly traded opiate or opioid analgesics, a class of drug which possesses three key properties of concern:

• they act as analgesics (pain relievers) and anxiolytics (anxiety relievers), while triggering an intense euphoria at high doses
• they cause narcosis (sedation or drowsiness) which can be dangerous at high doses
• their use can prompt the development of severe physical dependence or addiction with prolonged use or misuse

The powerful opioid drug fentanyl has all three of these properties, and over the past decade illicitly produced fentanyl has come to command an increasing portion of the United States drug trade, as well as opioid overdose deaths.

Illicit Fentanyl

In legitimate medical use, fentanyl pain medications take the form of injectable formulations, transdermal patches, transmucosal lozenges/lollipops, buccal soluble films, buccal tablets, sublingual sprays, and nasal sprays.

As a narcotic street drug, however, fentanyl can be more difficult to recognize. It is often used as an alternative ingredient in counterfeited drugs ranging from prescription opioids like Oxycontin (oxycodone) or hydrocodone to illicit drugs like heroin, ecstasy, and cocaine.

In fact, fentanyl has been steadily overtaking heroin in the U.S. illegal drug trade for a variety of different reasons:

• unlike heroin, which needs to be processed from morphine, fentanyl is a fully synthetic opioid that can be created from scratch in black market drug laboratories
• fentanyl is stronger than heroin (the same number of doses can be transported in a much smaller volume, making transportation cheaper and simpler)
• fentanyl has the same general effects and side effects as heroin but is believed to offer a higher profit margin for black market drug producers and vendors

Fentanyl & The Opioid Epidemic

The American opioid epidemic began with increased opioid prescribing in the 1990s, leading to an abrupt increase in prescription opioid addiction and prescription drug overdose deaths. Deaths from opioid drugs rose from 8,407 in 2000 to 21,089 in 2010.

As the government tightened opioid rules to combat this trend, overdose deaths increased further as individuals turned to heroin in the early 2010s, sending overdose deaths up to 25,052 per year in 2013.

The third and most recent wave of the crisis, which began in 2013, has seen a dramatic rise in illicitly produced and imported synthetic opioids, especially fentanyl and even more dangerous analogs of fentanyl.

As a result, yearly opioid-related deaths rose to 68,630 in 2020, and are still continuing to climb.

Fentanyl Overdose

Because it is such an exceedingly potent drug, those who use fentanyl need to prepare doses with a high degree of precision. However, the purity and/or identity of illicit drugs is almost impossible to determine, making illicit drug use an increasingly dangerous practice.

The risk of overdose from recreational fentanyl use also increases greatly when the drug is used with other substances of abuse, including depressants like alcohol and benzodiazepines and stimulants like cocaine and methamphetamine.

Signs and symptoms of a fentanyl overdose include:

• blue colored lips and fingernails
• cold and clammy skin
• difficulty thinking or responding to others
• dizziness/drowsiness
• respiratory depression or difficulty breathing
• low blood pressure
• muscle weakness
• nausea and vomiting
• pinpoint pupils
• slow heart rate
• coma

Responding To A Fentanyl Overdose

While Fentanyl overdoses are often fatal, they can be treated with an over-the-counter medication known as naloxone (Narcan).

This drug blocks opioid receptors in the body, rapidly reversing opioid overdose symptoms. It is often formulated as a nasal spray and is carried by first responders.

If you or a loved one struggle with a substance use disorder, including opioid or fentanyl addiction, please contact us today.