A recent poll of college students in the United States revealed that only 1 in 7 of them knew how to administer naloxone, the overdose antidote medicine, despite the fact that fentanyl-related fatal overdoses among young adults are on the rise.
Many survey respondents “reported a high willingness to intervene during an overdose, yet only a small proportion knew how to administer naloxone, an easily learned skill,” according to a group headed by Boston University School of Public Health PhD candidate Christina Freibott. The results were released in the JAMA Pediatrics journal on April 22.
According to Freibott’s research, despite no increase in the rates of illicit drug usage, the number of teenage fatal overdoses in the United States associated with fentanyl-laced narcotics tripled between 2019 and 2022. This implies that fentanyl, an extremely lethal substance, is being blended with a greater variety of recreational drugs than just opioids.
Naloxone
Actually, according to data, one-third of teenagers and young adults know someone who has overdosed on drugs. People who overdose on fentanyl can be saved by administering an injection of naloxone or using Narcan, a nasal spray.
More than 7,000 college students were asked to participate in the study by the Boston team. They were asked if they could recognize an overdose, if they would be ready to help in such cases, and if they knew how to give naloxone. Approximately two-thirds (66.8%) of respondents “felt comfortable calling emergency services during the time that they could recognize at least one sign that an overdose was occurring,” according to their findings.
Freibott’s team did note that slightly more than 14% “reported knowing how to administer naloxone.” When it came to utilizing the antidote, women (14.7%) knew a little bit more than men (13%).
Although it does take some training, using naloxone by injection or nasal spray is not difficult. In a video that was uploaded, the California Department of Public Health describes the symptoms of an overdose and how to give naloxone.
Freibott and her associates think that more could be done to give young people in America access to this kind of training. They claimed that “prevention and educational initiatives” are essential, particularly on college campuses. “With 20 million adolescents and young adults in higher education [more than half of all US adolescents and young adults], prevention efforts in this setting should be a public health priority,” they stated.
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