Death by Painkillers

1. Death by Painkillers Sophia Guerrero

2. Director and Forensic Pathologist Jessie Adame • Out of all the cadavers you’ve examined, how many had a painkiller overdose-related death? 300 to 400 (about 12.5% of my cases) • Are deaths like these easily preventable, in your opinion? No they are not. Drug addiction and drug abuse is a huge problem which are difficult to prevent since drugs are so readily available to those who seek them. • What’s the average age of the people that died due to a painkiller drug overdose? Variable but between 15 and 40 years of age. • Are painkiller overdose related deaths common? Yes they are. Many painkillers and anti-depressants are abused and are taken in excess which results in death.

4. Reactions • “I didn’t know that.” -Darien C. • “Are these statistics real? That’s a lot of deaths.”-Daniela A. • “Good thing I don’t even take painkillers.” – Maria A. • “I know a couple of family members that take painkillers. I’m going to tell them to be careful with them.” – Lizzy G. • “Whaaaaat?!” –Gisselle G.

5. Painkillers are the most abused type of drug. Painkillers kill more people than cocaine and heroine COMBINED! • hydrocodone (Vicodin) • oxycodone (Oxycontin, Perocet) • fentanyl (Duragesic, Fentora) • methadone • codeine

6. Facts • Deaths from prescription painkillers have skyrocketed during the past decade. • In 2010, 2 million people reported using prescription painkillers non-medically for the first time within the last year. That’s nearly 5,500 deaths a day!

7. More Facts • Nearly 15,000 people die every year of overdoses involving prescription painkillers. • In 2010, 1 in 20 people in the US (age 12 or older) reported using prescription painkillers for nonmedical reasons in the past year. • Enough prescription painkillers were prescribed in 2010 to medicate every American adult around-the-clock for a month

8. How do they work? • Special nerve endings send pain messages back to your brain. Painkilling drugs interfere with these messages, either at the site of the injury, in the spinal cord or in the brain itself

9. Tolerance:How people start getting addicted • People that take pills non-medically usually start with a normal dose. • Their body starts to tolerate the dosage, which causes the person to take larger and larger amounts in order to get that special “numb” feeling or that “high” that the prescription drugs provide them.

10. People start to consume more and more pills in order to get that feeling, but they don’t realize that they’re starting to get addicted to the pill, which later results in an overdose.

11. What is an overdose? Ingestion First Second D E A T H Third

12. Ingestion • The painkiller is taken. • The pill may be prescribed from a doctor or it may be consumed non-medically. It was obtained from a relative, friend, or a pill mill clinic.

13. First Phase First symptoms a person may have are: Central Nervous System • Sleepiness • Loss of conscience Pupils • Start to widen • Pinpoint pupils suggest opioid use 24 hours

14. Skin • Coldness • Clamminess • Blueness Muscular • Seizures Breathing • Slowness • Swallowed • Stopped

15. Second phase Things start getting serious. • Clearly see signs of liver damage • Acute kidney failure • Multiple organs start to dysfunction. • Brain starts to lack oxygen 24-72 hours

16. Third Phase • Necrosis to premature death of living cells is evident • Coagulation, complications, hypoglycemia, kidney failure, cerebral edema, multiple organ failure • Impossible to reverse the damage Day 3 to 5

17. DEATH

18. Treatments • Medical attention should be given right away. Examples: • Relieving the gastrointestinal system off the painkiller • Stomach pumping is done if it is overdose is life-threatening. Takes around an hour • Activated charcoal is typically used for stomach pumping • Last resort is liver transplant • Victim should receive further treatment for his or her drug use. • Painkiller rehab or treatment center specializing of the painkiller addiction

19. Questions?