25% Of Drugs Overdose Deaths Caused By Heroin: CDC Report

A recent report released by the United States Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveals 25 percent of all overdoses come from heroin.

In 2015 one in four drug overdoses was related to heroin where as in 1999 it was just limited to 6 percent.

In the overall deaths the most were caused by opioid in 2015. It represented 73 percent, a good jump from 57 percent in 2010.

Opioids include heroin, oxycodone, fentanyl and other similar chemical structure drugs including some illicit synthetics one.

Fentanyl was also blamed for the death of pop star Prince.

Dr Holly Hedegaard of the National Center for Health Statistics said it was first time in 2015 the number overdose exceeded 50,000 in the US to a total of 52,404. In 2010 the figure was 38,329.

Comparing the data in 2015 the deaths due to firearm were 36,252.

With the increase of heroin and synthetic drug-related deaths, a drop has been seen in the overdose deaths that involved natural and semisynthetic opioid analgesics like hydrocodone and oxycodone. These accounted for just 24 percent of deaths in 2015 where as in 2010 it was 29 percent.

Dr Holly Hedegaard also co-authored the study and said, “Starting in 2011, overdoses involving heroin has really skyrocketed. There’s a really good chance the increase involving heroin has to be involved with fentanyl.”