(NEWSnet/AP) — The U.S. has named a veterinary tranquilizer as an “emerging threat” when it's mixed with the powerful opioid fentanyl.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy made the name designation in 2019 to describe fast-growing drug dangers.

Officials are growing their concerns as the xylazine has become increasingly common in all regions of the country.

It was detected in about 800 drug deaths in the U.S. in 2020. By 2021, it was present in more than 3,000 fatalities, according to a report last year from the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Xylazine, sometimes known as “tranq,” is showing up in supplies of illicit drugs used by humans in major quantities in only the last several years.

It's believed to be added to other drugs to increase profits. Officials are trying to understand how much of it is diverted from veterinary uses and how much is made illicitly.

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