Abuse potential of fentanyl and fentanyl analogues

In this perspective review, we evaluated the clinical management of fatal fentanyl overdose in several routes of administration, concentrating on both legally prescribed and illegally produced formulations.

A literature search was conducted on Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases, using the following keywords: fentanyl, illicit fentanyl, deaths, misuse, abuse, and naloxone. We included only articles whose abstracts were available in English. All articles were screened using their abstracts to determine their relevance to the current review.

The gold standard for treating both acute and chronic pain is fentanyl, but abuse of the drug has exploded globally since the late 2000s. Fentanyl abuse has been shown to frequently result in serious harm and even death.

By educating patients and physicians, making rescue kits easily accessible, developing vaccines to prevent opioid addiction, and perhaps even creating new tamper-resistant fentanyl formulations, it may be possible to prevent fentanyl misuse, therapeutic errors, and the repercussions that follow.