Legal vs. Illegal Fentanyl Use

Prescription fentanyl is typically used to treat patients with severe pain, especially after surgery. It is also sometimes used to treat patients with chronic pain who are physically tolerant to other opioids (a class of drugs naturally found in the opium poppy plant). Known by brand names such as Actiq®, Duragesic®, and Sublimaze®, it can be given as a shot, a patch that is put on a person’s skin, or as lozenges that are sucked like cough drops.

Illegal fentanyl is made in labs and sold illegally as a powder, dropped onto blotter paper, put in eye droppers and nasal sprays, or made into pills that can look like other prescription opioids, benzodiazepines (such as Xanax), or illicit substances like MDMA (ecstasy).

Some drug dealers mix fentanyl with other drugs, such as heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and MDMA. This is because it takes very little to produce a high with fentanyl, making it a cheaper option. This is especially risky when people don’t realize the drugs they are taking might contain fentanyl as a cheap but dangerous additive. Taking stronger opioids than their bodies are used to makes them more likely to overdose.