The limitations of this approach include logistical barriers in creating such a system lack of use by clinicians and pharmacists in regions with existing prescription drug monitoring programs and the inability to capture street drugs. A statewide - ideally nationwide - prescription drug monitoring program could have alerted clinicians about Petty’s list of medications.

This dangerous concoction probably didn’t come from a single doctor but from multiple providers. Petty was receiving multiple medications that potentiated his risk of overdosing. Medication-assisted therapy, along with psychosocial therapies, could have saved Petty’s life, as they have for a myriad of my patients. This egregious treatment gap is driven by stigma, as well as lack of patient and clinician knowledge, legislative obstacles, and the like. Yet of the 23 million Americans with substance use disorders, only 1 in 10 get access to this treatment. In other words, medication-assisted therapy saves lives. Long-acting injectable naltrexone is also FDA approved to treat opioid use disorder. Medications like methadone and buprenorphine not only reduce withdrawal symptoms but also reduce the risk of relapse and overdose. Watch: ‘Like you’re living in hell’: A survivor on what opioid withdrawal did to his body Although my patients - mostly low-income, underserved, minority men and women - are far removed from Petty’s rock ’n’ roll lifestyle, they all had pain and suffering in common with the “Heartbreaker.” While the majority experience alcohol use disorder - which kills far more people than all opioids combined - a growing number of individuals struggle with opioids (heroin, Percocet, Vicodin, Ox圜ontin, and the like). Other substances in his system were the opioid oxycodone alprazolam and temazepam, benzodiazepines that are often used to treat anxiety or muscle spasms and citalopram, an antidepressant.Īs the medical director of a state-run addiction treatment center in New York City, I treat people with various substance use disorders. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of overdose deaths from synthetic opioids including fentanyl (and excluding methadone) surged from 3,105 in 2013 to 20,000 in 2016. That was the cycle with Prince, and just happened again with Tom Petty - we recently learned that the legendary musician died of an accidental drug overdose.īased on the toxicology report, multiple controlled substances were found in Petty’s system, including two types of fentanyl, a potent synthetic opioid. When a celebrity’s death first becomes public, news outlets usually report “cause of death unknown” or “died suddenly.” Weeks or months later, once the official autopsy and toxicology reports are completed, we discover what we may have already suspected. Exclusive analysis of biotech, pharma, and the life sciences Learn More

Tom petty dead