Naloxone: A Lifesaving Tool Against Opioid Overdose Aaron Hunt, Gabriela Murza, Amy May, Jenna Hawks, and Alyssa Ferrin
What Is Naloxone? Naloxone is a medicine that can temporarily stop an opioid overdose by blocking the effects of opioids on the brain, which can save a person's life. Commonly used opioids include pills to reduce pain (oxycontin, Vicodin, Percocet, etc.), heroin, fentanyl, and others. Narcan® is the most common version of naloxone and comes as a nasal spray version available over-thecounter in pharmacies and through community and public health programs at health departments (National Institute on Drug Abuse [NIDA], 2022).
Why Is Naloxone Important? Substance-related overdoses are increasing in the U.S. In 2022, there were 107,941 overdose deaths nationwide, with 68% involving synthetic opioids like fentanyl (NIDA, 2024). In Utah, 577 people died from overdoses in 2022, and 70% of these deaths involved opioids (Utah Department of Health and Human Services [UDHHS], 2023; UDHHS 2025). Naloxone can prevent many of these deaths by offering a chance to reverse an overdose.
How to Recognize Signs of Opioid Overdose? When a person takes too many opioids, it sends a message to the brain to stop breathing, which is called respiratory depression. This causes the body to slowly shut down, ending in death if breathing is not restored. Figure 1 summarizes the possible key signs when a
Figure 1. Overdose Signs to Recognize Figure credit: Chapel Taylor-Olsen 1