As a nurse, Can someone explain to me how a person OD'ing on Fentaynol can get not one but two Narcan shots and still not come to? How much Fent do you need to use to get a tol that strong?
Krudler @ Krudler @lemmy.world Posts 13Comments 913Joined 2 yr. ago
Krudler @ Krudler @lemmy.world
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Tolerance is part of the equation, but breathing and circulation play a huge role too
If a nasal spray is administered but the person isn't breathing it will still be absorbed, but if oxygen levels are low af it's going to take more time, therefore you keep pumping the narcan until you're sure. When I'm standing over an OD'ing street kid, I'm taking NO chances.
Same thing with intramuscular injections. Yes the drug is in the body but circulation helps a lot and if the heart has slowed or stopped... well. You keep pumping shots of narcan until they die or come back.
Final most important is that the user or person attending may believe the user took fent, but they probably had a dangerous street concoction consisting of fent + any other number of who-knows-what. Often referred to as "down". There's absolutely no way to know if they need more narcan because of tolerance or something else
edit: At the end of it all, there is no way after the fact to determine what the "correct" amount of narcan was for that situation. It is highly situational and depends on many factors. The rule is if you're not sure, more narcan, because this ain't the time to guess wrong.