By Bay City News.
Authorities confirmed Monday the first death from an animal tranquilizer in Santa Clara County attributed to its increasing mix with opioids such as fentanyl and heroin.
A 36-year-old man who was found unconscious in San Jose and died in late February has tested positive for xylazine, known as "tranq," after postmortem testing, county officials said.
The veterinary tranquilizer has been linked to an increasing number of fatal overdoses and serious injuries in cases across the country.
"This tragic event is an important alert to the community that xylazine is now present in drugs in Santa Clara County," said Dr. Michelle Jorden, the county's chief medical examiner. "The last thing I want is to see more xylazine deaths here, but sadly, the experience of the rest of the country indicates that there may be more to come."
Last month, the US Drug Enforcement Administration issued an alert about a sharp increase in the trafficking of fentanyl laced with the drug.
Xylazine can slow down the nervous system and also slow breathing and heart rate, health officials said.
Santa Clara County officials are urging that steps be taken to reduce overdoses, including the use of naloxone or Narcan, in the event of a suspected overdose.
Naloxone does not reverse a xylazine overdose, but it should still be given in cases of overdose to reverse the opioid component, health officials said.
Naloxone was recently approved for over-the-counter distribution in pharmacies and is free at many community sites.
"Community members need to be even more vigilant about how and what they are using, with xylazine now in Santa Clara County," said Dr. Tiffany Ho, medical director for the county Department of Behavioral Health Services.
In San Francisco, the public health department said four people who had died of overdoses in December and January had traces of xylazine in their systems.
Testing for the drug is not yet available in all emergency rooms or health care settings, and the county Department of Public Health is alerting local doctors to the increasing presence of xylazine.
According to the DEA, the drug can cause large and serious wounds at the injection site that can lead to amputation.
Anyone who has a wound from using the medication should clean and cover the wound to prevent infection and consult a doctor immediately.
Anyone seeking treatment for substance use can contact their primary care physician or call the Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services Call Center at 1-800-704-0900, 24 hours a day, to services in English, Vietnamese, Spanish, Tagalog and Mandarin.
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