Reported Xylazine Use Among Adults Aged ≥18 Years Evaluated for Substance Use Treatment - United States, July 2022-September 2023.

Abstract

Xylazine has been increasingly detected in illegally manufactured fentanyl (IMF) products and overdose deaths in the United States; most xylazine-involved overdose deaths involve IMF. A convenience sample of U.S. adults aged ≥18 years was identified from those evaluated for substance use treatment during July 2022-September 2023. Data were collected using the Addiction Severity Index-Multimedia Version clinical assessment tool. Among 43,947 adults, 6,415 (14.6%) reported IMF or heroin as their primary lifetime substance-use problem; 5,344 (12.2%) reported recent (i.e., past-30-day) IMF or heroin use. Among adults reporting IMF or heroin as their primary lifetime substance-use problem, 817 (12.7%) reported ever using xylazine. Among adults reporting recent IMF or heroin use, 443 (8.3%) reported recent xylazine use. Among adults reporting IMF or heroin use recently or as their primary lifetime substance-use problem, those reporting xylazine use reported a median of two past nonfatal overdoses from any drug compared with a median of one overdose among those who did not report xylazine use; as well, higher percentages of persons who reported xylazine use reported other recent substance use and polysubstance use. Provision of nonjudgmental care and services, including naloxone, wound care, and linkage to and retention of persons in effective substance use treatment, might reduce harms including overdose among persons reporting xylazine use.