SUBOXONE AND BUPRENORPHINE
By Blessing Akintunde
Sociology 333
Steven Montesinos
INTRODUCTION There is no way one would talk about suboxone without its main component which is buprenorphine. Buprenorphine is a secondary form of the opioid alkaloid Thebaine. It has a chemical structure of C_29 H_41 〖NO〗_4. It acts differently depending on the activation site or receptor it is located. It works at mu and kappa opioid receptors as an agonist and at the delta opioid receptor as an antagonist. As a derivative of Thebaine, it is a stronger and longer-lasting painkiller compared to morphine. It proved to be more effective than morphine, when used in a comparably small dose.
Suboxone is a sublingual tablet made from buprenorphine
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Buprenorphine was discovered in 1966 by Reckitt Benckiser of Reckitt and Colman company. Despite the discovery of buprenorphine in 1966, it was first marketed in 1995 as a drug that is more effective than morphine in treating severe, chronic pain. It was marketed in France in response to the AIDS epidemic among heroin injection users (2017). On the other hand, excessive use of buprenorphine led to mass abuse of the drug. Due to the abuse of buprenorphine, suboxone was created. In the early 1990s, Reckitt made a new drug from the combination of buprenorphine and naloxone in respond to the demand in reducing the abuse of buprenorphine. Suboxone was then approved by the FDA in the early 2000s. It became to newest drug used in treating opioid addiction. In 2002, DEA changed buprenorphine from a schedule V drug to a schedule III drug. About 55% of people that use suboxone are within the age group of 20-40 and 38% within the age group of 40-60. Also, approximately 60% of those that use suboxone are male. “According to a survey, the number of clients that use buprenorphine increased from 727 to 21,236 between 2004 to 2015. This does not include those who received buprenorphine through independent waivered physicians (Alderks, 2017)”. This showed that the use of buprenorphine had about 48% …show more content…
Dopamine creates an amazing sensation of euphoria. But when suboxone enters the brain, its buprenorphine component binds to the opioid receptors instead. Buprenorphine is more powerful than any other opioid, so it creates a stronger bond with the opioid receptors. It then kicks off other opioids in the brain. With the use of suboxone or buprenorphine, one does not get the same euphoric effects as other opioid but they help with the craving. This is because buprenorphine imitates opioids and the receptors are tricked into thinking that they are bonded to opioid, causing satisfaction. Since buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist, it produces gentler effects than those produced by
The painkiller Vioxx was introduced in 1999 by Merck & Co. It has been used by over 20 million Americans since it was put on the market. Vioxx remained on the market for approximately five years without adequate warnings about its risks. In September of 2004, Merck took Vioxx off the market after a study revealed that it doubled the risk of heart attack or stroke for patients that used it for more than 18 months. Although Merck claimed that they had no idea of these possibly lethal side effects, some internal documents imply that they had been aware of the problem for years and had not made moves to change it. Over 300 lawsuits have been filed against Merck, and it is expected that thousands more will arise.
With the growing number of individuals addicted to these narcotics, the need for better therapies and treatments to end these addictions has grown exponentially. Of these therapies and treatments prescribed to these patients, the newest and seemingly most celebrated is a treatment known as Suboxone therapy. This therapy is for those individuals who have opiate addictions and are seeking help toward a more speedy recovery (Thompson-Gargano, 2004).
In 1906, the Pure Food and Drug Act, that was years in the making was finally passed under President Roosevelt. This law reflected a sea change in medicine-- an unprecedented wave of regulations. No longer could drug companies have a secret formula and hide potentially toxic substances such as heroin under their patent. The law required drug companies to specify the ingredients of medications on the label. It also regulated the purity and dosage of substances. Not by mere coincidence was the law passed only about five years after Bayer, a German based drug company began selling the morphine derivative, heroin. Thought to be a safe, non-habit forming alternative to morphine, heroin quickly became the “cure-all drug” that was used to treat anything from coughs to restlessness. Yet, just as quickly as it became a household staple, many began to question the innocence of the substance. While the 1906 law had inherent weaknesses, it signaled the beginning of the end for “cure-all” drugs, such as opiate-filled “soothing syrups” that were used for infants. By tracing and evaluating various reports by doctors and investigative journalists on the medical use of heroin, it is clear that the desire for this legislative measure developed from an offshoot in the medical community-- a transformation that took doctors out from behind the curtain, and brought the public into a new era of awareness.
...steadily as heroin use increased. The number of people 12 and older who regularly abuse OxyContin dropped from 566,000 in 2010 to 358,000 in 2012, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported in December. The number of regular heroin users soared from 239,000 in 2010 to 335,000 in 2012 (USA TDAY).”
Opioids are used as pain relievers and although it does the job, there are adverse side effects. Opioids are frequently used in the medical field, allowing doctors to overprescribe their patients. The substance can be very addicting to the dosage being prescribed to the patient. Doctors are commonly prescribing opioids for patients who have mild, moderate, and severe pain. As the pain becomes more severe for the patient, the doctor is more likely to increase the dosage. The increasing dosages of the narcotics become highly addicting. Opioids should not be prescribed as pain killers, due to their highly addictive chemical composition, the detrimental effects on opioid dependent patients, the body, and on future adolescents. Frequently doctors have become carless which causes an upsurge of opioids being overprescribed.
Opiates are a class of drugs that are used for chronic pain. Opioids are substances that are used to relieve pain by binding opiate receptors throughout the body, and in the brain. These areas in the brain control pain and also emotions, producing a feeling of excitement or happiness. As the brain gets used to these feelings, and the body builds a tolerance to the opioids, there is a need for more opioids and then the possibility of addiction. There are different forms of opioids manufactured such as Morphine, Oxycodone, Buprenorphine, Hydrocodone, and Methadone.
It was the late 19th century when a lot of conflict for families from the Industrial Revolution and illegal drugs had easy access to anyone in the United Sates. These illegal drugs like morphine, cocaine, and alcohol were available through manufacture, delivery, and selling. It was proved that the over use of alcohol and violence in families’ homes were linked together around the 1850’s and that women and children were being abused by the father and husband from the letters and journals that were wrote. These were times when women were stay at home mothers and it was the man’s responsibility to be the provider for the wife and children. Because of the abuse in the household it led up to the temperance movement. The purpose
... e acute withdrawal period systolic and diastolic blood pressure increase, usually beyond pre-morphine levels, and heart rate increases, which could potentially cause a heart attack, blood clot, or stroke. Morphine has been used for many years in different cultures, and for different reasons. It has been abused, demolished, revived, and manufactured. It has saved many lives and ruined many more.
Ms. Roxie Riggs is a Caucasian female some sixty-five years of age presenting with narcotic addiction for an evaluation for possible medical addiction treatment. She is currently receiving treatment with buprenorphine; however, her practitioner moved away. Ms. Riggs was placed on methadone in 2001 (age 51), and stopped in 2005 (age 55). She has also been treated with naltrexone in the past, but not with naloxone. Ms. Riggs first began taking buprenorphine on January 1, 1994, and is still using the substance.
Drug addiction is often characterized as being a complex brain disease that causes compulsive, uncontrollable, drug craving, seeking and use without any regards to the consequences they may bring upon themselves, or society. As long as the brain is exposed to these large amounts of dopamine on the reward system, it will inevitably develop a tolerance to the current dopamine levels, which it is receiving, lessening the pleasure the user will experience. In order to satisfy the brains “reward...
Opiate pills are astonishingly easy to find. Disturbingly, prescription opiate abusers are more likely to eventually develop a heroin addiction than a non-opiate abuser, as heroin will offer a parallel high at an inexpensive fee. While opiate painkillers do vary in how powerful they are, opiates are numbing painkillers that weaken the central nervous system, slow down body functioning, and reduce physical and psychological pain. Although countless prescription opioid narcotics are used in the way they were intended for the extent prescribed without complications, certain people become addicted to the way in which the drugs make them
Methadone revolutionized the treatment of opioid addiction in the 1960s by providing the first effective, practical, and legal alternative to detoxification for the treatment of opioid addiction.
In the present day there is a harsh stigma towards the use of opioid narcotic medication. Stories of addiction and overdose are passed around. The media is brimming with panic over the use of these medications. By and large, this can be seen as more of an overdose crisis than an opioid crisis. Federal and medical guidelines for prescribing opioid medications have changed drastically over the last several years because of this epidemic. Unfortunately, due to the increasing level of abuse that these medications are associated with, people with chronic pain are untreated, undermedicated, and suffering. Opiate narcotics, when used properly by responsible patients, are invaluable in alleviating acute or chronic cases of moderate to severe pain.
Opioids are a group of drugs that act as pain relievers. Morphine and Codeine are the most well-known of these opioids. Morphine is administered in hospitals and is used to treat extreme pain, generally after surgery. Opioids are also native to our body, the ones we produce are known as endorphins. When an opioid is released into the body, it binds to opioid receptors, these reduce nerve transmission and therefore reduce pain and to a lesser extent, emotions. Over time the body will develop a dependence on opioids and will react badly when they are removed. (AUS pain management association)
Nearly all drugs of abuse increase dopamine release. Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter in drug abuse and addiction. Dopamine plays a role in reward-motivated behaviors, motor control and important hormones. It’s known as the “feel good hormone” which is why people abuse drugs that increase the release of dopamine. Since life is unpredictable, our brains have evolved the ability to remodel themselves in response to our experiences.