Journal of forensic sciences
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Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid used as a general anesthetic and analgetic. Fatal outcome from intravenous misuse of transdermal fentanyl is rare, and there are few such reports in literature. Here we report two cases of fatal intravenous injection of the content from fentanyl patches. ⋯ In the second case, the analysis revealed fentanyl (13.8 ng/mL), 7-aminoclonazepam (57.1 ng/mL), and sertralin (91.9 ng/mL) in postmortem blood and a small amount of ethanol (0.1 g/L) in postmortem urine. Police investigation revealed that both the deceased had bought the patches from the same source. The present cases demonstrate the possibility of intravenous misuse of transdermal patches and the risk of fatal outcome.