Deaths.
Because each county has its own medical examiner or justices of the peace to sign death
certificates, there is no real¿time centralized reporting of death data. The press has published
various numbers, and the Dallas County Medical Examiner at the end of March, 2007, reported no
deaths in 2005 involving heroin+diphenhydramine+acetaminophen. There were two deaths
involving this combination of drugs in 2006, and none as of the end of March, 2007. The Dallas
Medical Examiner is reexamining the death data to determine the number of deaths involving
heroin and other substances.
Poison Control Center Cases.
The Texas Poison Control Centers data on human exposure to
heroin, acetaminophen, and diphenhydramine in combination show one case in 1998, four in 2001,
one in 2002, two in 2003, one in 2004, none in 2005, and 10 in 2006. Between 1998 and 2005, the
age range was 17¿36, average 21.6 years. and during this period, there was one case in Dallas
and one in adjoining Cooke County. The other cases were spread around the state in Corpus
Christi, Amarillo, and Lubbock. The exposure reason for seven of the 1998¿2005 cases was
intentional, suspected suicide. The 10 cases in 2006 were all in Dallas and ages ranged from 13¿
48. Average was 21.1 years, but six of the cases were teenagers, with a 13 year old, two 14 year
olds, one 15, and one 16. Seven of the 2006 cases were male. Eight of the 10 cases were
intentional abuse.
In 2007, four cases had been reported to poison control centers through March (reporting may be
incomplete). Of these, ages ranged from 11¿18, average of average age of 14.5. Two of the cases
were from Dallas, one from Denton County, and one from Hockley County, which is west of
Lubbock. Three of four cases were males. Intentional abuse was the exposure reason for the four
cases to date in 2007. No deaths were reported in any of the poison control center cases between
1998 and March, 2007.
