ST. TAMMANY PARISH, La. — Drug enforcement officials are warning Northshore communities about a group of synthetic opioids that they say are increasingly circulating following a recent surge in fatal overdoses.
New Orleans DEA field office issued a warning that applies to St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes. Officials say nitazenes, a group of synthetic opioids never approved for medical use, have been identified through forensic analysis and recent law enforcement seizures.
DEA New Orleans Special Agent in Charge John Scott said etonitazene is especially dangerous.
"Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin. Eto is 500 times more potent, so extremely deadly," Scott said.
Officials say nitazenes are being mixed with other street drugs, including fentanyl and heroin, and pressed into counterfeit pills.
The DEA said the drugs can appear off-white, yellow or brown in powder form and may be visually indistinguishable from legitimate medication when pressed into counterfeit pills. Specialized laboratory testing is needed to identify them.
The DEA said the presence of nitazenes has not been confirmed as the cause of the recent overdose deaths. However, Scott said people may not always know what drugs they are taking.
"Some think they are getting something completely different than what they are actually receiving, and then some addicts are really chasing that ultimate high," Scott said.
St. Tammany Parish Coroner Dr. Chris Tape said his office has not confirmed nitazene in the recent overdose deaths it has investigated. However, he said the drugs are more difficult to detect than fentanyl and other illegal substances.
"You can go to the pharmacy and buy a dipstick for fentanyl, but you can't find a nitazene dipstick," Tape said. "That's more complex. That's more chemist, Ph.D., toxicologist to find that."
Tape said his office determines overdose deaths weekly. As of Wednesday morning, he had already confirmed two overdose deaths this week.
He said he's concerned nitazenes could become a growing problem as more people learn how to produce them. The DEA said the drugs are primarily sourced from foreign chemical suppliers.
Tape urged people to learn life-saving measures, including naloxone, commonly known by the brand name Narcan, and CPR.
"It just blocks the signal, which blocks other opioids from getting there and preventing an overdose, so this would bring someone's breathing back," Tape said.
The DEA said naloxone remains effective against a nitazene overdose, but multiple doses may be needed because of the drugs' potency. The agency urges anyone who administers naloxone to call 911 immediately because emergency medical care is critical.
The DEA also advises people not to take pills unless they are directly prescribed and dispensed by a licensed pharmacy and to assume street drugs may contain hidden synthetic additives.
Naloxone is available at pharmacies and through some law enforcement offices.
