Acute Opioid Overdose

Course overview

The misuse of opioids is a serious public health problem in the United States and worldwide. The number of deaths due to acute overdose of opioids has increased over the past decade and a majority of the deaths from drug overdose have been reportedly due to the use of opioids. Ingestion of an opioid done to evade arrests and ingestion of sealed packages of opioids done to conceal the transport of large amounts of opioids has been widely reported. Clinicians should be aware of the individual opioid drug types available for clinical use and their drug action and toxicity. The pathophysiology, signs and symptoms, and treatment of acute opioid intoxication are discussed.