Xylazine ("Tranq")
Xylazine, a non-opioid veterinary tranquilizer not approved for human use, has been linked to an increasing number of overdose deaths nationwide in the evolving drug addiction and overdose crisis. Studies show people exposed to xylazine often knowingly or unknowingly used it in combination with other drugs, particularly illicit fentanyl. Learn more below.
Video: Toxicity of Xylazine and How it Impacts People Who Use Drugs
Xylazine in the Drug Supply - National Harm Reduction Coalition
Wound Care and Medical Triage for People Who Use Drugs and the Programs that Serve Them - NASTAD
Massachusetts Drug Supply Stream: Community Drug Supply Alert
NEJM Article: Xylazine: Medical and Public Health Imperatives
Notes from the Field: Xylazine, a Veterinary Tranquilizer, Identified as an Emerging Novel Substance in Drug Overdose Deaths — Connecticut, 2019–2020
Fact Sheets
Research & Statistics
- Unintentional Drug Overdose Deaths in Connecticut
The Connecticut Department of Public Health presents an interactive dashboard with drug overdose data to increase public awareness about the impact of the opioid crisis in Connecticut.