New Higher-Dose Naloxone Spray Doesn’t Prevent More Fatal Overdoses: Study

A new higher-dose naloxone nasal spray does not prevent more fatal opioid overdoses than the usual lower dose, a new study finds.

The new 8 milligram nasal spray, which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2021, does cause more vomiting and other side effects compared with the usual 4-milligram dose, the Associated Press reports.

The FDA approved the higher dose after experts and patient advocates said lower-dose naloxone was being given multiple times to people who were overdosing, the article notes.

“What was really remarkable was the survival was the same, but the amount of withdrawal symptoms was significantly larger in the people that got the 8-milligram dose,” said study co-author Dr. Michael Dailey of Albany Medical College.

The study found that among people who received the higher-dose naloxone, 38% experienced signs and symptoms of withdrawal, including vomiting, abdominal pain, sweating, shaking and diarrhea, compared with 19% of those getting the lower dose.