Health officials in BC have issued a rare province-wide drug poisoning alert after detecting a powerful sedative increasingly present in the unregulated opioid supply.
The BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) announced Monday that opioids — including drugs sold as fentanyl or “down” — are often being found with medetomidine, a non-opioid sedative normally used in veterinary medicine.
The presence of this substance is driving an increase in drug poisoning cases, health officials warn.
Medetomidine is not intended for human use and can slow breathing and heart rate, reduce blood pressure, and prolong sedation.
Its effects can be stronger and longer-lasting than other sedatives sometimes found in the drug supply, making it harder to respond to poisonings.
“It can also potentially make people feel very sleepy or go unconscious, increasing the risk of drug poisoning,” BCCDC said in its information bulletin.
“Novel substances in the unregulated drug supply are putting people who use substances at greater risk.”
The province-wide warning builds on local alerts issued earlier this month.
On January 20th, health officials issued a drug poisoning alert for the Cowichan region, noting that drug poisonings were increasing and that friends, family and community members using unregulated substances were facing heightened risk.
No further details about substances were released at the time.
In the same period, other regional health authorities also shared drug alerts tied to contaminated or unexpectedly potent substances in the unregulated supply, underlining that the risk is not isolated.
Although BCCDC says there has not yet been a clear rise in deaths tied directly to medetomidine, officials stressed that non-fatal drug poisonings are increasing and remain a serious concern, as they can lead to brain injury due to lack of oxygen.
