NOBLESVILLE, Ind. — The Hamilton County Health Department confirmed the first nonfatal xylazine overdose. Xylazine is a tranquilizer only approved for veterinary use.
The health department says xylazine has only been tested for the past year, so it's important for not only emergency management to know how to respond, but the public as well. The biggest thing is, there are no specific signs of it during an overdose. The only indicator someone is using xylazine is open wounds where the person injected.
"A lot of times, people think they will always see the marks, and that's not true," said James Ginder, health education specialist for the Hamilton County Health Department.
The department is pushing for education on how to respond to a drug overdose. The first thing to do is call 911. Since xylazine is not an opioid, Narcan does not work, but they still encourage everyone to use it.
"We always want to make sure people have Narcan with them, even if they think it is a xylazine overdose, because it's probably mixed with something else," Ginder said.
The next step is to perform CPR and stay on the phone with dispatch to do it correctly.
Some Indiana health departments can test for xylazine on needles, but Hamilton County can only test it on a drug screen. That's how the department determined the person who overdosed had it in their system.
"Sometimes you'll see test strips out there for fentanyl. Unfortunately, there is not one for xylazine, so it would just pop up on a normal screen," Ginder said.
The Hamilton County Health Department offers CPR and Narcan classes. You can also go to the department to pick up Narcan to always have on hand.