Notes from the Field : Xylazine, a Veterinary Tranquilizer, Identified as an Emerging Novel Substance in Drug Overdose Deaths — Connecticut, 2019–2020

Abstract

The article focuses on the identification of the veterinary tranquilizer xylazine as an emerging novel substance in drug overdose deaths in Connecticut from 2019 to 2020. Topics discussed include the xylazine positive test results in 76 overdose cases in the state from January to July 2020, occurrence of xylazine-associated deaths in non-Hispanic White persons, and the highest mortality rate among people 25 to 34 years of age.