28 Jun Health ministry says carfentanil-related deaths increasing in Ontario
The letter says a preliminary report from Dr. Dirk Huyer, the province’s chief coroner, cited 142 carfentanil-related deaths through April 29, 2019, compared to 95 for all of 2018. That represented a 50 per cent increase for the first four months of the year.
“While carfentanil has been detected in Ontario previously, recent toxicology data suggest an increase in carfentanil presence in Ontario in the past few months,” the letter said.
The toxicology data is based on positive urine samples, which also showed a sharp increase to more than 700 for both April and May this year at LifeLabs testing facilities, compared to between zero and 100 monthly in 2017-18. The letter says that data does not include other community and hospital labs, which do their own testing. It also represents only samples from people accessing testing at LifeLabs and may not apply to all drug users.
“We do not know whether people were using carfentanil intentionally or unintentionally,” the letter reads.
According to information on the City of Ottawa website, April and May were also the months with the highest number of overdoses in 2019: 43 in April and 39 in May. Those numbers are based on overdoses reported in hospital emergency departments.
The provincial letter says data on carfentanil potency remains limited, but evidence suggests carfentanil is significantly more potent than fentanyl.
Some studies claim carfentanil is 100 times more potent than fentanyl.
The letter also says use of carfentanil can increase the risk of overdose and death compared with use of fentanyl or other opioids.
“Carfentanil is a very toxic opioid and people who use carfentanil may be at high risk of overdose,” the letter states.
The letter urged public health organizations to warn people in their jurisdictions of carfentanil’s increased presence. It also included recommendations to reduce the risk of overdoses for drug users, including:
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