Opioid Overdose Outbreak — West Virginia, August 2016

Details

• Journal Article:
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• Personal Author:
  Massey, Joel ; Kilkenny, Michael ; Batdorf, Samantha ; Sanders, Sarah K. ; Ellison, Debra ; Halpin, John ; Gladden, R. Matthew ; Bixler, Danae ; Haddy, Loretta ; Gupta, Rahul
• Description:
  On August 15, 2016, the Mayor's Office of Drug Control Policy in Huntington, West Virginia, notified the Cabell-Huntington Health Department (CHHD) of multiple calls regarding opioid overdose received by the emergency medical system (EMS) during 3 p.m.-8 p.m. that day. A public health investigation and response conducted by the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health (BPH) and CHHD identified 20 opioid overdose cases within a 53-hour period in Cabell County; all cases included emergency department (ED) encounters. EMS personnel, other first responders, and ED providers administered the opioid antidote naloxone to 16 (80%) patients, six of whom were administered multiple doses, suggTesting exposure to a highly potent opioid. No patients received referral for recovery support services. In addition to the public health investigation, a public safety investigation was conducted; comprehensive opioid toxicology tTesting of clinical specimens identified the synthetic opioid fentanyl* and novel fentanyl analogs, including carfentanil,| which had been used by patients who overdosed in Huntington. Results of these two investigations highlight the importance of collaboration between public health and public safety agencies to provide in-depth Surveillance data from opioid overdose outbreaks that involve high-potency fentanyl analogs. These data facilitated a public health response through increased awareness of powerful opioid substances requiring multiple naloxone doses for reversal, and improved patient linkage to recovery support services and a harm reduction program from the ED after opioid overdose.
• Subjects:
  Adolescent Adult Analgesics, Opioid Designer Drugs Disease Outbreaks Drug Overdose Emergency Medical Services Female Fentanyl Full Report Humans Male Middle Aged Naloxone Narcotic Antagonists Opioid-Related Disorders Young Adult

  More +
• Source:
  MMWR Morbidity Mortal Weekly Rep. 66(37):975-980.
• Series:
  Weekly Report: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• DOI:
  http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6637a3
• ISSN:
  0149-2195 (print) ; 1545-861X (digital)
• Pubmed ID:
  28934186
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC5657780
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  West Virginia
• Pages in Document:
  6 pdf pages
• Volume:
  66
• Issue:
  37
• Collection(s):
  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:36e71d37f3fa2d0fdbee193ca07f620f5686b34b9fba28736714910d03a5b1bd33829340b5cf4ad692de5b6c697e8cda513fa0f1cec823eb4a42ee47809ca875
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/54637/cdc_54637_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 157.26 KB ]