Home Blogs Helping States Combat the Overdose Crisis with Reliable Fentanyl & Xylazine Test Strips

Sections

Helping States Combat the Overdose Crisis with Reliable Fentanyl & Xylazine Test Strips

The Opioid Crisis Demands Action

Amidst the opioid crisis, the threat from synthetic opioids like fentanyl and xylazine has escalated. Lochness Medical Supplies, in partnership with BTNX, provides crucial testing strips that detect these substances, which are often unknowingly mixed into drugs. Together, we empower public health agencies and individuals with tools to make informed decisions, enhancing safety and reducing overdose risks.

To see our full suite of harm reduction products please visit our Harm Reduction website.

Empowering Harm Reduction with Rapid Response Test Strips

Harm reduction is a crucial public health strategy aimed at minimizing the negative consequences of drug use. Rapid Response™ fentanyl and xylazine test strips play a vital role in these efforts, empowering individuals and communities to make informed decisions and reduce the risk of overdose.

The Vermont Department of Health follows these tennants in their Harm Reduction program:

Never use alone
Go slow – start with a small amount to test drug strength
Call 911 in case of an overdose
Use new syringes
Test your drugs for fentanyl, xylazine and other contaminants using rapid test strips
Carry naloxone

Vist the Vermont Department of Health website for an example.

How it works

Strips are handed out by Harm Reduction Agencies, Public Health Departments, Colleges and other groups.
Before use, individuals dilute their drug sample in water.
Individuals dip the test strip in the diluted sample to test it, wait 1 minute and read the results.
The results can help the individual make safer decisions about their use.

Lochness Medical: Leaders in Fentanyl Detection

As North America's largest and first provider of fentanyl test strips, BTNX, supported by Lochness Medical Supplies as the premier distributor, offers easy-to-use and affordable solutions to detect fentanyl. These strips are utilized by top health institutions and harm reduction programs across the U.S. and Canada, including:

Learn more about our fentanyl test strips here.

Addressing the Xylazine Challenge

With the rise of xylazine in the drug supply, Lochness Medical and BTNX have responded swiftly by developing test strips to detect this powerful sedative. Our collaborative efforts support heavily impacted states through partnerships with:

Learn more about our xylazine test strip here.

The Most Researched Strips on the Market

After years of multiple academic and public health institutions conducting research on our products, we can proudly say our harm reduction line of tests are the most reviewed and studied than any other test on the market. Many state and provincial public health authorities have initiated harm reduction strategies with BTNX test strips, preventing opioid overdoses while also educating users to help reduce the risk of any associated harms.

Below are links to third party independent research conducted on our tests.

Johns Hopkins Research Rapid Response™ Fentanyl Test Strips showed the lowest detection limit and highest accuracy among other fentanyl detection methods when tested by Johns Hopkins Bloombearg School of Public Health.
Visit the VCH Website The Vancouver Coastal Health Authority offers Rapid Response™ Fentanyl Strips at their overdose prevention and supervised consumption sites and in their take-home drug testing kits.
Read the CFSRE Report Rapid Response™ Xylazine Test Strip’s performance was deemed acceptable for drug checking purposes, demonstrating high sensitivity, specificity, and precision when evaluated by the Center for Forensic Science Research and Education (CFSRE) and the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH).
Read the NIST Study Conducted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the improved Rapid Response™ Xylazine Test Strip 2.0 has shown no cross reaction with lidocaine and is suitable for testing drug samples including cocaine.
Read the Laboratory of Toxicology, Ghent University Study A recent study from Ghent University showed Rapid Response™ Nitazene Test Strips are capable of detecting the presence of a wide range of nitazene analogues and may be used to alert users of the presence of nitazene analogues in authentic (street) drug samples.

Our Other Testing Capabilities

In addition to rapid Xylazine and Fentanyl tests our team keeps on top of the latest trends in the illicit drug supply, ensuring we are capable of offering detection for the harmful adulterants. These strips include:

Medetomidine: Like Xylazine, medetomidine is a potent sedative and analgesic drug primarily used in veterinary medicine. Recently it has been found in the North American drug supply. Medetomidine can cause side effects like bradycardia (slow heart rate) and hypotension (low blood pressure) and can be potentially deadly if combined with other substances. Our test strips detect medetomidine at a cutoff level of 1000 ng/mL. Learn more about our Medetomidine test strips here.

Nitazene: Nitazene are a class of synthetic opioids that have gained attention in the United States and other countries in recent years. The prevalence of Nitazene in the illegal drug supply has been on the rise since 2019. Recent evidence suggests Nitazene may be more potent than fentanyl and may require a higher dose of naloxone in case of overdose. Our test strips detect medetomidine at a cutoff level of 200 ng/mL. Learn more about our Nitazene test strips here.

Benzodiazepine: Benzodiazepines are medications that are frequently prescribed for the symptomatic treatment of anxiety and sleep disorders. They produce their effects via specific receptors involving a neurochemical called gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA). Risk of physical dependence increases if Benzodiazepines are taken regularly (e.g., daily) for more than a few months, especially at higher-than-normal doses. When paired with other drugs, such as fentanyl, it can increase the risk overdose due to its sedative effect. Our test strips detect benzodiazepine at a cutoff level of 300 ng/mL. Learn more about our benzodiazepine test strips here.

Get in Touch

Looking to learn more about how Lochness Medical helps organizations institute harm reduction initiatives, or for bulk pricing contact us at yw@lochnessmedical.com

Ready to order?

Are you Tax-exempt? Please call us on 1-888-339-9964 or orders@lochnessmedical.com with appropriate document before placing your order.

Back to Blogs