Duragesic Fentanyl Patches: One Mother's Story

Stafford, VAFor those who think it is impossible to die from using a Duragesic fentanyl patch, Helen's story should make you think again. Helen's son died from fentanyl poisoning on July 22, 2006.

Helen (not her real name) says her son met an older woman approximately two months before he died. A month after meeting her, he decided to move in with her. The woman had rheumatoid arthritis and was prescribed fentanyl patches for the pain. Helen says her son also had medical issues: she says he had a low IQ, depression and ADHD and required medication.

A month after Helen's son moved in with this woman, Helen received a phone call to get to the hospital. Her son had died. The cause of death, determined through an autopsy, was fentanyl poisoning.

"He was 19 years old when he died," Helen says. "It was labeled a suspicious death. The woman had her fentanyl prescription refilled on Wednesday and he died the following Saturday. Two patches were missing from the box but when my son arrived in the hospital there were no patches on him. The two packages that the patches came from were found on the floor, but there were no patches found. The woman claims she woke up in the night and saw my son had a patch on him so she took it off him and threw it on the floor, but that patch was never found. She had no explanation for the missing second patch."

According to Helen, there are conflicting stories about how long this woman had been putting patches on her son. "Some of her friends said she had been giving them all along and they told her to stop because she was killing him. Another friend was there with them the night before my son died and the next morning. He left to get some cigarettes and told the woman to call a doctor. When he got back, she said she had not called a doctor. This friend saw that my son's lips were blue and called 911."

Helen says she saw her son regularly in the month he lived with this woman (who was charged with felony murder in the case but sentenced for distribution of the patches following a plea agreement). She says the only time he looked unusual was the Wednesday prior to his death, when he looked pale to her. However, she says that after he ate dinner his color came back and he seemed fine.

There is a lot that is unknown about the death of Helen's son. It is not known how long he was being given the fentanyl patches. It is not known why this woman put the patches on him in the first place. What is known is that the fentanyl patches caused his death.

"He was DOA at the home," Helen says. "When the ambulance arrived they could not revive him. The male who was in the home the night before told his girlfriend that they tried to wake him up at midnight, between 3:00 and 4:00 AM and between 7:00-8:00 AM and couldn't. At noon his lips were blue, so the friend called 911. Had they called 911 the first time they couldn't wake him up, they could have saved him."

Duragesic fentanyl pain patches have been recalled due to a manufacturing defect that can cause a person's skin to come in contact with the fentanyl gel. Skin contact with the gel can cause serious side effects, including a potentially fatal overdose. Anyone using the Duragesic fentanyl pain patches is warned to stop because of this risk.

If someone you know is using the Duragesic fentanyl patches and experiences any signs of overdose, including loss of consciousness, seizures, slow breathing, dizziness, and small pupils, get medical attention for them immediately. Exposure to fentanyl can be fatal, which Helen knows all too well.