title: Opioid overdose prevention and naloxone rescue kits: what we know and what we don't know.
abstract: The opioid use and overdose crisis is persistent and dynamic. Opioid overdoses were initially driven in the 1990s and 2000s by the increasing availability and misuse of prescription opioids. More recently, opioid overdoses are increasing at alarming rates due to wider use of heroin, which in some places is mixed with fentanyl or fentanyl derivatives. Naloxone access for opioid overdose rescue is one of the US Department of Health and Human Services' three priority areas for responding to the opioid crisis. This article summarizes the known benefits of naloxone access and details unanswered questions about overdose education and naloxone rescue kits. Hopefully future research will address these knowledge gaps, improve the effectiveness of opioid overdose education and naloxone distribution programs, and unlock the full promise of naloxone rescue kits.
authors.affiliation: Instructor of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, 801 Massachusetts Avenue, Floor 2, Boston, MA, 02118, USA. Todd.Kerensky@bmc.org.
authors.forename: Todd
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kerensky
authors.affiliation: Section of General Internal Medicine, Clinical Addiction Research and Education Unit, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, 801 Massachusetts Avenue, Floor 2, Boston, MA, 02118, USA.
authors.forename: Alexander Y
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Walley
mesh_terms: D062787:Drug Overdose / Q000517:prevention & control*; D055030:Drug Users; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009270:Naloxone / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D009292:Narcotic Antagonists / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy*; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D009292:Narcotic Antagonists; D009270:Naloxone
keywords: Naloxone rescue kits; Opioid overdose education; Overdose prevention