A large majority of opioid overdose victims in Atlantic County who received naloxone from an emergency responder survived the overdose, according to a study released on Monday by Stockton University.

In early 2018, Stockton collaborated with the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office to analyze information on 311 overdose victims to garner a better understanding of the county’s opioid overdose statistics.

The data was extracted from information collected during 2015 – 2017 using the State Attorney General’s Heroin & Opiates Task Force Naloxone Administration Reporting Form for Atlantic County.

In most cases, the victims who received naloxone were revived in five minutes or less. The study also shows a majority of overdose victims during the timeframe were male (71 percent) and white (73 percent).

“The data showed that quick response to opioid overdoses and prompt administration of the drug naloxone can save lives,” the authors said in the report.

The data also shows that more than half (52 percent) of victims were under 35 years old, though overdoses were spread across all age groups; and while the victims’ residential addresses were widespread, the majority of overdose incidents were reported from Atlantic City (54 percent), followed by Somers Point (9 percent), Pleasantville (8 percent), Galloway (6 percent), Ventnor (6 percent) and Hammonton (5 percent).

About 40 percent of the overdoses happened between October and December.

The study also suggests a need for statewide resources to conduct more rigorous research in this area as “it will be critical to examine this problem with the intersection of race, age, and gender so appropriate policies can be drawn that suit specific population groups.”

The report was produced in collaboration with Captain Bruce DeShields, an investigator in the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, and authored by Executive Director of the Stockton Center for Community Engagement Merydawilda Colon, Professor of Public Health Tara Crowell, Distinguished Professor of Physical Therapy Mary Lou Galantino, Associate Provost Carra Leah Hood, and Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Manish Madan.

Galantino said the study is just one of Stockton’s initiatives to compile data and research strategies addressing opioid abuse, addiction and recovery in South Jersey. Faculty are also completing a study on integrating yoga for women in recovery.

A recent report by the Center for Disease Control suggests an increase in naloxone prescriptions could be one reason overdose deaths have stopped rising for the first time in nearly three decades.