Total heroin related deaths are deaths due to either heroin alone or in combination with other drugs or alcohol.

Heroin is an illegal, highly addictive drug processed from morphine (a naturally occurring substance extracted from the seed pod of certain varieties of poppy plants). It is usually sold as a white or brownish powder and is typically injected but is also smoked and snorted (NIDA, 2018). Most heroin users also use at least one other drug or alcohol (CDC, 2017). This practice is especially dangerous because it increases the risk of overdose.

Heroin use has increased across the U.S. among men and women, most age groups, and all income levels (CDC, 2017). When people inject heroin, they are at risk of serious, long-term viral infections such as HIV, Hepatitis C, and Hepatitis B, as well as bacterial infections of the skin, bloodstream, and heart (CDC, 2017).

Prescription opioids and heroin are chemically similar and can produce a similar high. Since heroin may be cheaper and easier to get than prescription opioids, some people switch to using heroin instead. Nearly 80 percent of Americans using heroin (including those in treatment) reported misusing prescription opioids first (NIDA 2018).