Ohio Crime Laboratory Has Seen an Increase in Counterfeit Pills Containing Fentanyl

Counterfeit oxycodone tablet containing fentanyl. Source: DEA

The Lake County, Ohio Crime Lab has processed an uptick in counterfeit pills made in fentanyl, according to The News Herald.  The News Herald has reported that while some of the fake pills were made with fentanyl and fentanyl analogues, others “contained a fentanyl with the seizure and nerve pain medication gabapentin.”  A 2017 study found that gabapentin and any opioid can be a deadly combination due to its potential to increase “the risk of acute overdose death through either reversal of tolerance or an additive effect of the drugs to depress respiration.”

The Lake County Crime lab processed more than 250 counterfeit oxycodone tablets, and officials with the lab told the News Herald that such counterfeit pill discoveries are on the rise.