Dangerous new trends are popping up in fentanyl use | News

The Allen County Action Commission for the Opiate Epidemic got the latest on what is happening in the world of opioids.

Dr. Jon Sprague of the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation talked about demographic information and numbers of opioid prescriptions across the state. He also talked about the science behind the drug and the dangerous risks dealers are taking.

“What we’re starting to see is combinations of fentanyl and methamphetamine,” said Sprague. “We know in Ohio we’re seeing methamphetamine being added to forms of opioids and sometimes that will enhance the high and maybe a lower dose of opioid could be used, but that’s a dangerous combination in and of itself.”

Another common trend the country is seeing in the opioid crisis is suppliers playing a chemistry game when it comes to the fentanyl they’re putting on the streets.

“By changing the chemical structure just slightly they can then make a compound that’s never been seen and as a result, it’s not scheduled,” said Sprague. “That’s where the issue came in, is that this isn’t illegal. It’s only because we haven’t seen it and it was just a chemical game that had been played with the core structure of fentanyl.”

Sprague says he has seen 14 variations of fentanyl. While neighboring states like Michigan and Indiana have struggled with this, Ohio was actually ahead of the curve by outlawing any variation of the core structure of fentanyl. Still, he says, there is always room to improve on how we’re dealing with opioids.