Epidemiology of drug-related deaths in Europe, new trends in opioid-related deaths

At least 8200 overdose deaths, involving one or more illicit drug, occurred in the European Union in 2017 (and 9500 deaths if Norway and Turkey are included). With 23 deaths per million population aged 15-64 in the EU in 2017, the burden of premature and preventable deaths is high. Most cases are males, and the increasing mean age at death (40 years) reflects the ageing of the opioid users in particular in Western Europe. Opioids, mainly heroin, are involved in the majority of deaths (four out of five) and there is an increasing number of deaths caused by opioid medications and illicitly produced synthetic opioids such as fentanils. Trends, common patterns and differences in overdose deaths across Europe will be discussed