Lake Zurich man dies from drug not seen before in Cook County

A 35-year-old Lake Zurich man was one of two recent deaths attributed to opioids never before seen in Cook County and the number of deaths attributed to a powerful opioid have increased nearly fourfold, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

The men were not identified nor were details of the deaths. But in a news release the medical examiner's office said their deaths this summer resulted from a lethal combination of fentanyl analogues, which are not pharmaceutical-grade drugs like those administered by medical professionals for severe pain.

According to the medical examiner's office, toxicology testing on a 46-year old Chicago man who died Sept. 10 found he had the fentanyl analog carfentanil in his system. Carfentanil is a fentanyl analog that is 10,000 times more potent than morphine, which is the active component of heroin. Carfentanil is used in veterinary practices to immobilize large animals.

In addition, the office has confirmed a 35-year-old Lake Zurich man died June 8 from a 3-Methylfentanyl overdose. 3-Methylfentanyl is also a fentanyl analog and it is four times more potent than morphine.

The cases are the first deaths in Cook County from those specific fentanyl analogues; however, the office this year has seen a marked increase in deaths from fentanyl and other fentanyl analogues, according to the medical examiner's office.

"Fentanyl and fentanyl analogues, like carfentanil, are very powerful drugs that are likely to be lethal. Just one dose can easily stop a person from breathing, causing immediate death," Dr. Ponni Arunkumar, Cook County's chief medical examiner, said in a news release Friday.

"Carfentanil is an elephant tranquilizer. It is not a drug that humans should be ingesting. These high-potency opioids and opioid analogues are thousands of times stronger than street opioids like heroin and are far more likely to cause death," said Dr. Steve Aks, emergency medicine physician and toxicologist at Cook County Health & Hospitals System's Stroger Hospital.

So far in 2016, 380 deaths were caused, at least in part, by fentanyl or fentanyl analogues. That number is likely to grow, as toxicology testing can take up to 90 days.

In 2015, the office found 102 deaths were caused, at least in part, by fentanyl or fentanyl analogues. In 2014, 20 deaths were attributed to fentanyl, according to the medical examiner's office.

The most common fentanyl analogues in Cook County include furanyl fentanyl and a precursor/metabolite of fentanyl called despropionyl fentanyl or 4-ANPP, according to the medical examiner's office.

The office began routinely testing for fentanyl starting in June 2015 after national trends showed a spike in fentanyl use. Previously, the office tested for fentanyl at the discretion of the pathologist. Often, testing was done due to the circumstance of the case; for example, if an unknown substance was found with a decedent.

Toxicology tests show decedents have used fentanyl alone, with heroin and with other drugs, such as cocaine.