MILWAUKEE — A deputy was administered Narcan after responding to a scene where he believes he was exposed to fentanyl.
This happened in the middle of the Fond du Lac Freeway, as Milwaukee County Deputy Adriean William was inspecting inside a crashed vehicle. The preliminary cause of the crash he was investigating was from an accidental overdose.
He says he's thankful his partner and supervisor quickly made it there and gave him Narcan, which can reverse an opioid overdose.
“I was there I heard everything I saw everything I just couldn’t move. It was terrible, I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. I couldn’t feel my feet, I couldn’t feel my legs, I was just numb, I was out of it. It was almost instantaneous," Deputy William said.
Experts, however, say the risk to law enforcement officers when it comes to fentanyl is low.
“It’s extremely unlikely that law enforcement officials or other first responders will experience an overdose after brief, unintentional exposure while caring for individuals who used opioids,” Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and CNN medical analyst, told CNN.com.
This is due to the way fentanyl enters the body. Scientific studies have shown that powdered fentanyl can not be easily absorbed through skin, and while inhaling the drug is possible, it would need to be in a high concentration in an enclosed space.
A study from the American College of Medical Toxicology on fentanyl exposure concluded:
"...The risk of clinically significant exposure to emergency responders is extremely low. To date, we have not seen reports of emergency responders developing signs or symptoms consistent with opioid toxicity from incidental contact with opioids. Incidental dermal absorption is unlikely to cause opioid toxicity."
Dr. Wen agrees, telling CNN that opioids “are not well-absorbed through the skin except through prolonged exposure” and, outside situations of biological warfare, are “not aerosolized and inhaled through the air.”
Deputy Williams says it took two days for him to feel normal again.
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