SAN ANTONIO – According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the pharmaceutical fentanyl is a synthetic opioid approved for treating severe pain, typically advanced cancer pain.
Fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine and is prescribed as transdermal patches or lozenges.
The CDC says the most recent cases of fentanyl-related harm, overdose, and death in the U.S. are linked to illegally made fentanyl.
Overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids other than methadone, which includes fentanyl and fentanyl analogs, increased by over 56% from 2019 to 2020, according to the CDC.
Narcan is a life-saving antidote to fentanyl and can be acquired for free.
The antidote is recommended to have on hand for anyone who comes in contact with fentanyl, whether prescribed or not.
Click here for more details on how to get and use Narcan.
Watch the latest KSAT Explains episode in the player above to learn more about fentanyl.