'Zombie drug' detected in growing number of overdose deaths in Monroe County. What you should know
Sen. Charles Schumer this month is circling the Empire State regarding the increasing illicit use of the potent animal tranquillizer xylazine, which is fueling a recent increase in naloxone-resistant overdoses in New York.
Xylazine is a non-opioid sedative, analgesic and muscle relaxant authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for veterinary use. The drug does not have any approved use for humans.
In October, the U.S. Department of Justice and Drug Enforcement Agency issued a report stating that xylazine has been increasingly detected in the illicit U.S. drug supply and in a growing number of overdose deaths, with the Northeast having the highest identified occurrences of the drug during 2020 and 2021. The New York State Department of Health reported the presence of xylazine in various parts of the state, including New York City, Onondaga County, Monroe County and Long Island.
Xylazine has been a contributing factor in fatal overdoses across Monroe County for years, with over 180 deaths tied to the lethal drug since 2019, Schumer said Monday in a telephone interview.
The drug caused 59 fatal overdoses in Monroe County and three in Wayne County in 2022 and is suspected in 10 fatal overdose cases under investigation in Wayne County this year. In comparison, Monroe County logged just one overdose linked to xylazine three years earlier, in 2019.
The FDA reported that xylazine-containing products may be sold under street names tranq, sleep-cut, zombie drug and Philly dope. Side effects of xylazine include respiratory depression, low blood pressure and low rate heart. Individuals with repeated exposure to xylazine are at risk of developing “skin ulcers, abscesses and related complications, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Narcan cannot reverse the effects of xylazine because it is not an opioid.
"It's a terrifying drug," said Schumer, D-N.Y. "It's already here in the Finger Lakes and we want to stop it from going further."
The recent uptick in xylazine-related overdoses marked a deadly new chapter in Wayne and Monroe counties, which have both been hit hard by the opioid epidemic - which worsened during the pandemic.
According to the Monroe County Medical Examiner's Office, xylazine was present in nearly one-fifth of the county's 293 confirmed opioid-related overdose deaths in 2021. The county's 2022 opioid overdose death report has not yet been released.
Xylazine has mainly been found added to the opioids heroin and fentanyl, and has also been detected in stimulants like cocaine and methamphetamine. People use the drug by injecting, snorting, swallowing or inhaling it.
"The struggle for those battling opioid abuse is minute to minute, hour to hour and dangerous new drugs like xylazine make our work so much more critical," said Jennifer Carlson, president and CEO of Finger Lakes Addictions Counseling Referral Agency (FLACRA).
In response to the increased prevalence of xylazine in the region, Schumer this month has met with with law enforcement and health officials across the state, where he outlined a plan to combat the public health crisis.
The "three-pronged plan” includes cutting off the flow of drugs into the U.S., aiding law enforcement, and more prevention, treatment and recovery for those suffering from addiction.
"Curbing an epidemic of this proportion requires all hands on deck," Monroe County Sheriff Todd Baxter said in a news release.
Xylazine powder can be purchased for prices ranging between $6 to $20 per kilo, Baxter said, noting that drug traffickers and dealers add xylazine to a mixture so they can include less fentanyl or heroin, "prolonging the effects of the drugs, while increasing profits," Baxter said. "As those dealing this poison change their tactics, so must we in our response to this crisis... Lives depend on it.”
Includes reporting by staff writer Kate Collins
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Xylazine detected in growing number of OD deaths in Rochester NY region
