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Coroner’s annual report: Overdoses double in 2016

LISBON — The Columbiana County coroner’s annual report for 2016 arrived just in time for 2018.

The report, which usually arrives mid year, was delivered to the newspaper on Jan. 4.

“We were behind schedule,” said Brandi Phillips, chief coroner’s investigator. Phillips said they were especially busy at times in 2017, and then she had to take medical leave for a while. Phillips said they have already begun compiling statistics for 2017.

The annual report has become much anticipated because of the significant increase in drug overdose deaths, especially over the past several years, due to the opioid crisis.

The number of accidental overdose deaths nearly doubled in 2016 to 37 compared to 19 the year before. Overdose deaths had been steadily rising since 2009, reaching 26 in 2013 before dropping to 19 in 2014 and increasing to 27 in 2015.

Despite all of the attention generated because of the opioid crisis, the number of accidental overdose deaths in 2017 is not on track to exceed 2016. Phillips reported they have 35 confirmed accidental overdose deaths to date but the toxicology tests on some of those suspected deaths have yet to come back from the state crime lab.

Of the 37 accidental overdose deaths in 2016, 13 occurred in the East Liverpool zip code, followed by Salem at five, Wellsville at four, and Lisbon at three. East Palestine, Rogers and Leetonia each had two, while other areas of the county had one each.

The most common drugs found in their systems, in order of prominence, were fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, benzodiazepine (an antidepressant) and morphine. In 2015, fentanyl — blamed for fueling the spike in ODs over the past several years– was the fifth most prominent drug found in the system of an overdose victim

Almost all overdose deaths now involve a deadly cocktail of drugs instead of just one. “I can’t tell you the last time we got a drug test back with only one drug in their system,” Phillips said.

Meanwhile, the number of homicides increased from two in 2015 to three in 2016. The highest number of homicides on record in the county was 10, which occurred in 1979.

Suicides also decreased dramatically in 2016, declining from 21 to 12, equaling the lowest total since 2002. The methods used were hanging, firearms and deliberate blood loss.

The coroner’s office investigated 145 of the 1,063 deaths that occurred in the county in 2016. Of the 145 deaths that were investigated in some fashion, the majority — 125 — involved only toxicology tests, while another 14 resulted in an autopsy. Of the 145 deaths, 73 were determined to be from natural causes, 54 from accidents, 12 from suicides, three from homicides, and three were undetermined.

Of the 54 accidental deaths, 37 were from overdose deaths, two from drowning, five from traffic accidents, seven from falls at home or a nursing home, two from vehicle-versus-train collisions, and one from a traffic accident involving a pedestrian.

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