Opiates |
IInformation on
Opiates
Opiates include heroin, morphine, codeine, Oxycontin, Dilaudid,
methadone, and others.
Drug Facts: About 9% of the population is believed to
misuse opiates over the course of their lifetime, including illegal drugs like
heroin and prescribed pain medications such as
Oxycontin.
When the drugs are stopped, the body needs time to recover, and
withdrawal symptoms result. Withdrawal from opiates can occur whenever any
chronic use is discontinued or reduced.
Some people even withdraw from opiates after hospitalization for
painful conditions without realizing what is happening to them. They think they
have the flu, and because they don't know that opiates would fix the problem,
they don't crave the drugs.
The speed and severity of withdrawal depends on the half-life of
the opioid - heroin withdrawal occurs more quickly and is more severe than
methadone withdrawal, but methadone withdrawal takes longer. The acute
withdrawal phase is often followed by a protracted phase of depression and
insomnia that can last for months.
Symptoms of withdrawal
include:
-Dilated pupils
-Diarrhea
-Runny nose
-Goose bumps
-Abdominal pain
-Sweating
-Agitation
-Nausea
-Vomiting
Treatment
of withdrawal includes supportive care and medications. The most commonly used
medication, clonidine, primarily reduces physical
symptoms.
Another detox method is to use a slowly tapered (reduced
overtime) dose of methadone to reduce the intensity of withdrawal symptoms.
Methadone maintenance involves ongoing use of methadone.
A new medication called buprenorphine has been shown to be more
effective than other medications for treating withdrawal from opiates, and can
shorten the length of detox. It may also be used for long-term maintenance like
methadone
Withdrawal from opiates is painful, but not
life-threatening
The biggest complication is return to drug use. Most opiate
overdose deaths occur in people who have just withdrawn or detoxed. Because
withdrawal reduces a previously-developed tolerance, recently withdrawn addicts
can overdose on a much smaller dose than they used to take daily. Addicts
should be warned about this possibility.
Some drug treatment programs have widely advertised treatments
for opiate withdrawal called detox under anesthesia or rapid opiate detox. This
involves anesthetizing the patient and injecting large doses of opiate-blocking
drugs, with hopes that this will speed up the transition to normal opioid
system function.
There is no evidence that these programs actually reduce the
time spent suffering withdrawal. In some cases, they may reduce the intensity
of symptoms. However, there have been several deaths associated with the
procedure, particularly when it is performed outside a
hospital.
Because opiate withdrawal produces vomiting, and vomiting during
anesthesia significantly increases death risk, many specialists think the risks
of this procedure significantly outweigh the potential (and unproven)
benefits.
Rehabilitation: Successful rehabilitation includes a
medical detox followed by a calm, stress free environment, plenty of liquids,
and replenishing of vitamins that have been burned out of the body. Use of a
mild sedative to help sleep is often helpful, as the lack of sleep is what can
cause the hallucinations. After feeling physically better, proper
rehabilitation therapy can commence that deals with relapse prevention, dealing
with the reasons the addict turned to drugs in the first place, and any
personal failings that need strengthening. It is highly recommended that a
daily routine of proper exercise, nutrition, and rest be followed as effective
relapse and craving prevention. Ideally a cleansing program would be also
administered to help rid the body of the residual toxins that can impair health
in the future and cause cravings.
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