Heroin and/or Opioid Medication Overdose - Medtick

Heroin and/or Opioid Medication Overdose

What is it?

Groups identified as being at high-risk for illicit drug overdose include:

  • Injecting drug misusers (especially during first use of opioids and opioid misusers who have H.I.V or liver disease):
  • Multiple drug misusers (especially when sedatives are used in combination with opioids or benzodiazepines);
  • Alcohol misusers (supplementary effect with opioids or benzodiazepines and formation of coca-ethylene with cocaine);
  • Male sex;
  • People dependent on opioids;
  • People with reduced tolerance to opioids (e.g. those released from prison, discharged from inpatient or residential detoxification, or have stopped dependent opioid use);
  • Drug users who use on their own (fatal overdose risk increased).

An ambulance should be called in all cases of suspected overdose.

The Pharmaceutical Journal, PJ, 2 May 2015, Vol 294, No 7860;294(7860):DOI:10.1211/
PJ.2015.20068355

If someone has taken heroin, methadone or another opiate and overdoses don’t assume they will come round.

  • Don’t panic
  • Put them in a recovery position
  • Dial for emergency services
  • Give Nalaxone injection (if available):
    1. Get the nalaxone from a safe place you have stored it.
    2. Decide where you are going to inject: On the upper arm muscle or thigh muscle (we want to reduce hitting a nerve or artery).
    3. Hold the syringe at 90 degrees angle about two or three inches from the skin.
    4. Insert the needle with a single quick motion.
    5. Steadily push down on the plunger to the first black line on the syringe (this will inject the first 0.4ml dose).
    6. Pull out the needle and syringe and put it back in the case. Make a note of the time.
    7. If they don’t come round in two minutes, give them another dose of 0.4ml/one black line on the syringe.
    8. If there is any bleeding, apply pressure to the injection site with tissue.
  • Stay with them until the ambulance arrives.

This could save their lives

Symptoms

  • Extremely small pupils, sometimes as small as the head of a pin (pinpoint pupils)?
  • Dry mouth?
  • Discolored tongue?
  • Bluish-colored nails and lips?
  • No breathing?
  • Shallow breathing?
  • Slow and difficult breathing?
  • Low blood pressure?
  • Weak pulse?
  • Constipation?
  • Spasms of the stomach and abdominal pain?
  • Delirium (Medical emergency):
    • Problem with attention (This could mean the person is inattentive and does not focus or that he or she can focus on tasks but at the expense of all else — failure to shift attention.)?
    • Disorganised thinking (such as not being able to remember things or being confused)?
    • Altered level of consciousness (hyper-alertness and on edge, or sluggish, drowsy or withdrawn)?
    • Change is sudden and/or does it fluctuate over hours or days?
  • Disorientation?
  • Drowsiness?
  • Uncontrolled muscle movements?
  • Coma?

Complications /Information to beware of/General tips:

Medical Emergency Condition

Do not wait, phone for an ambulance if have or develop:

If someone has taken heroin, methadone or another opiate and overdoses don’t assume they will come round.
  • Don’t panic
  • Put them in a recovery position
  • Dial for emergency services
  • Give Nalaxone injection (if available):
    1. Get the nalaxone from a safe place you have stored it.
    2. Decide where you are going to inject: On the upper arm muscle or thigh muscle (we want to reduce hitting a nerve or artery).
    3. Hold the syringe at 90 degrees angle about two or three inches from the skin.
    4. Insert the needle with a single quick motion.
    5. Steadily push down on the plunger to the first black line on the syringe (this will inject the first 0.4ml dose).
    6. Pull out the needle and syringe and put it back in the case. Make a note of the time.
    7. If they don’t come round in two minutes, give them another dose of 0.4ml/one black line on the syringe.
    8. If there is any bleeding, apply pressure to the injection site with tissue.
  • Stay with them until the ambulance arrives.

This could save their lives


This condition can or may lead to:

Detailed Information

Please copy and paste any key words from the title: Heroin and/or Opioid Medication Overdose in the following respective 'Medtick References and/or Sources' to find out more about the disease (this also may include diagnosis tests and generic medical treatments).

  • NHS

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  • Pharmaceutical Journal

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  • Cleveland Clinic

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  • Mayo Clinic

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  • Drugs.com

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  • National Organisation of Rare Diseases

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  • Verywell Health

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  • Fit for Travel

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  • DR Axe

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