Perscription Medine: Fentanyl
Firefighters are required to carry anticoagulants just like a police required to carry a gun now more than ever. Fentanyl is replacing morphine because fentanyl is an opioid that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, there is an increasing number of overdoses and deaths of people that are using the drug illicitly by producing inexpensive fentanyl mixed with illegal drugs like heroine and fentanyls. In the industry of medicine, the sudden arrival of counterfeit prescription drugs containing fentanyls results in an increase in overdoses, deaths, opiate-dependent individuals, and profit to potential traffickers that exploit high consumer demand for prescription medications. The use of fentanyl as a substitute
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for morphine should be enforced as the primary choice for prescription medicine with regulations. During the 1960s, Dr.
Paul Janssen developed Sublimaze. It is as an anesthetic prescription medicine. First made in 1959, Sublimaze, now known as fentanyl, is frequently used to provide palliative care for individuals with cancer. As a nonpolar opioid, fentanyl rapidly crosses the blood-brain barrier, a brain membrane, and releases dopamine. Other opioids that are polar – the intensity of a substance dissolving, have a longer period of time spent traveling through the blood-brain barrier causing the opioid to have diminutive effects in releasing dopamine than fentanyl. This makes fentanyl about 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin. The misuse of this opioid leads to its pharmacological effects and produces analgesia, vomiting, respiratory depression, and nausea. The side effect is similar to other opioid receptors (like morphine or …show more content…
oxycodone)(DEA). There are two most common types of fentanyls , analgesic and duragesic patches. Alfentanil is commonly analgesic used with a combination of fentanyl for pain management. According to Enforcement Administration: Office of Diversion Control, between late 2013 and late 2014 alone, there were over 700 deaths related to fentanyl in the United States, and this figure is largely believed to be underestimated due to variations in state reporting techniques and deaths being attributed to heroin(DEA). Now, the Office of Diversion has reported that "Toxicology results of approximately 53 percent of drug-related overdose decedents indicated the presence of an opioid (acetyl fentanyl, fentanyl, hydrocodone, methadone, oxycodone, tramadol), with fentanyl the most frequently identified, appearing in approximately 51 percent of opioid-positive decedents. At least one opioid-positive decedent was present in every county that reported drug-related overdose deaths and associated drugs in 2015." The initial purpose for the duragesic was to provide an slow, and continuous dose of medicine at a reasonable rate for 72 hours. The patch is intended for people with chronic pain and severe injuries that need an elastic pain reliever. However, the misuse of the patch leads to fatal symptoms. It is so dangerous that the law enforcement have to wear hazard suits just to confiscate the drug. Fentanyl is such a probable fatal substance that the body can absorb in mid air to skin contact. People have made alternatives like the counterfeits of heroin and over the time have modified to produce and react faster and longer; fentanyl patches, intravenous, and lollipops.
According to The Division Control department currently, fentanyl crisis is fueled by China-sourced fentanyls and fentanyl precursor chemicals that are being sold to various individuals and organizations responsible for fentanyl processing and distribution operations. Also the Enforcement Administration: Office of Diversion Control reported in May 2015 - Chinese Customs officials seized 46 kilograms of fentanyl and 26 kilograms of acetyl fentanyl hidden in a cargo container destined for Mexico. These drugs are then distributed in states. In 2016, DEA Miami Field Division reports a kilogram of acetyl fentanyl purchased in Florida for $1700, sourced from China (DEA). There are no laws in China regulating the production or sale of prescription medicine, making them easily accessible to potential drug traffickers. China then exports the fentanyl to Mexico, and from there its distributed throughout the country into the United States. In 2006, illegally manufactured, non-pharmaceutical fentanyl often mixed with cocaine or heroin caused an outbreak of overdose deaths in the United States and Canada, heavily concentrated in the cities of Dayton, Ohio; Chicago; Detroit. Analgesics through the state of crystal powder has been killing dozens of people.
. The FDA made Fentanyl a schedule II substance under the Controlled Substances Act because of the fatality. According to US Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration. Automation of Reports and Consolidated Orders System (ARCOS), in May 2010, President Obama released the National Drug Control Strategy, which outlined the Administration's science-based public health approach to drug policy for regulating opioids. At the national level, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy establishes policies, priorities, and objectives for the nation's drug control program to reduce illicit drug use, manufacturing, and trafficking; drug-related crime and violence; and drug-related health consequences ( ARCOS).It is so dangerous that the law enforcement have to wear hazard suits just to confiscate the drug. Fentanyl is a substance that the body can absorb in mid air to skin contact.
About 435,000 Americans regularly use heroin, a large increase in the last decade. 28,000 deaths a year are attributed to opiate overdoses, 2,590 of which occur in Ohio. This causes an increase of children in government custody, law enforcement officers carrying naloxone, and overflow in treatment centers. Drug traffickers choose Ohio to avoid violence involved with drug trade in large cities. Clinics over-prescribed very addictive painkillers, but once law enforcement cracked down they became very expensive, giving the cheap drug heroin an advantage. Adam Conkey was prescribed with pain pills twenty years ago, which started him on the road to heroin. Conkey and his girlfriend, Natasha
1Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opiate analgesic, which has a primary function in managing malignant and non-malignant contractible pain, similar to morphine however it is more potent. This is because fentanyl has an octanol-water partition of 9550 compared to morphine, which has 6. This effectively demonstrates that fentanyl is highly lipid soluble, crossing the blood brain barrier more rapidly. Hence it has a quicker reaction time but at a shorter duration compared to morphine. It is commonly used to treat patients with severe pain or patients experiencing pain after a surgery. Fentanyl can also be used to treat patients with chronic pain that are physically tolerant to opiates. Patients who are not physically tolerant to opiates should avoid the use of fentanyl as this can cause undesirable side effects, which can in some cases be toxic. Fentanyl is registered as a class II prescription drug, meaning that it has a greater potential for being abused, which could have negative implications on a patient’s health as it can result in psychological or physical dependence.1
Naloxone [Narcan] is a structural analog of morphine that acts as a competitive antagonist at opioid receptors, thereby blocking opioid actions. Naloxone can reverse most effects of the opioid agonists, including respiratory depression, coma, and analgesia (Lehne, 2013). Naloxone may be administered IV, IM, Intranasal, or subQ. Following IV injection, effects begin almost immediately and persist about 1 hour. Following IM or subQ injection, effects begin within 2 to 5 minutes and persist several hours (Lehne, 2013).
The documentary states that over 27,000 deaths a year are due to overdose from heroin and other opioids. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in 2015 prescription pain relievers account for 20,101 overdose deaths, and 12,990 overdose deaths are related to heroin (Rudd et al., 2010-2015). The documentary’s investigation gives the history of how the heroin epidemic started, with a great focus on the hospice movement. We are presented with the idea that once someone is addicted to painkillers, the difficulty in obtaining the drug over a long period of time becomes too expensive and too difficult. This often leads people to use heroin. This idea is true as a 2014 survey found that 94% of respondents who were being treated for opioid addiction said they chose to use heroin because prescription opioids were “more expensive and harder to obtain (Cicero et al., 2014).” Four in five heroin users actually started out using prescription painkillers (Johns, 2013). This correlation between heroin and prescription painkiller use supports the idea presented in the documentary that “prescription opiates are heroin prep school.”
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.
The Beginnings of The Problem Opium has first arrived in London as a new medicinal trade product. It is new, compact, easily transported, and non-perishable. Trade with China proved very profitable and flourished for more than twenty years uninterrupted, until in 1835 China passed its first laws prohibiting the importation of opium (1). In the years following this prohibition, England responded simply by shifting the drop off points to other ports in China. China resisted these efforts, by England, to continue trade and began attacking their ships.
By the year 2000 opioid medicine containing oxycodone etc., are being abused and misused and more than doubled in 10 years’ time.
Heroin is one of the most dangerous drugs in the world. When using heroin, people run the risk of developing serious “infectious diseases” such as HIV/AIDS and hepatitis (The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), 2014, para 10). Above all, heroin use often results in death. The DEA Strategic Intelligence Section (2016), who prepared the 2016 National Heroin Threat Assessment Summary claims that heroin is the most fatal drug compared to other drugs because heroin related deaths occur at a much higher rate. In 2014 cocaine users outnumbered heroin users by about three and a half to one, yet there were twice as many heroin related deaths compared to that of cocaine (p. 9). One of the main causes of the large amount of death is a result of what dealers are lacing their heroin with. Fentanyl, a drug that is considered “50” to “100” times stronger than morphine (NIDA, 2016, para 1), is being used by dealers to mix in with their heroin in order to increase its effects and the quantity of their product. Because of how strong fentanyl-laced heroin is, the possibility of overdosing rises, which is the effect that numerous addicts seek out to attain. In the article “Spiked”, written by Maggie Lee (2015), Lieutenant Rick Mason from the Atlanta Police Department emphasizes, “… if somebody OD’s, that’s who [heroin addicts] want to buy their heroin from because it’s the strongest and it must be the best” (para 22). Heroin addicts chase the powerful batches, often asking around for the dealer selling the batch that is causing mass overdoses. Their high tolerance for heroin lead them to believe that they will not fall victim to a deadly overdose until it is too late. When these users consume what they think is their normal dose, the fentanyl kills them. Those unable to receive prescription medication from a doctor will argue that heroin is a cheap way to relieve pain. While heroin may help to
On the typical day, over 90 people will die at the hand of opioid abuse in America alone (National). In fact, as of 2014, nearly 2 million Americans were dependent and abusing opioids. The Opioid Crisis has affected America and its citizens in various ways, including health policy, health care, and the life in populous areas. Due to the mass dependence and mortality, the crisis has become an issue that must be resolved in all aspects.
Substance addiction is becoming an epidemic. While some people can quit using a substance without any help, most people need help to their recovery. Narcotics anonymous is an important support group for our society. There are many different narcotic anonymous programs to join that have meetings throughout the week. The members of the support group all share one thing in common, they suffer from different types of chemical dependency. Members help each other because they have the same problems and worries that everyone in the room has. Though they may be struggling with different stages in their life, for the most part, they all relate to what each is going through. Just as AA, NA focuses on the 12-step program. The members of
Crack is the name given to cocaine that has been transformed into a condensed, more pure, rock form that can be smoked. It is the most addictive form of cocaine due to a higher potency level than the typical batch of street cocaine. Crack cocaine has often been referred to as a ‘soul drug’ because it has a tendency to rob its victims of everything including money, family, morals, and even life itself. Furthermore, it is possible to become addicted to crack cocaine from the very first time it is used, creating a vortex of misery for those who come into contact with it. Compared to other drugs, crack cocaine has a rather short history in America since it was only introduced the 1980’s. However, within this short period, Crack cocaine
. “The illegal drug market in the United States is one of the most profitable in the world. As such, it attracts the most ruthless, sophisticated, and aggressive drug traffickers.” Throughout the years drug trafficking has been a major issue in America. These issues have impacted our economy, security, which promote new laws and policies throughout the U.S. and among our boarders. Drug Trafficking has created conflict with other countries such as Mexico. “…criminal groups operating from neighboring Mexico smuggle cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, amphetamine, and marijuana into the United States. These criminal groups have smuggled heroin and marijuana across the Southwest Border and distributed them throughout the United States since the 1970s.” (Policy Almanac).
In 1805, morphine and codeine were isolated from opium, and morphine served as a cure for opium addiction since its addictive characteristics were not known. Morphine’s use as a treatment for opium addiction was initially well received, as morphine has about ten times more euphoric effects than the equivalent amount of opium. Over the years, however, morphine abuse has increased. Heroin was synthesized from morphine in 1874 by an English chemist, but was not made commercially until 1898 by the Bayer Pharmaceutical Company. Attempts were proposed to use heroin in place of morphine due to problems of morphine abuse.
In Saint Louis especially, there is an ongoing epidemic of drug use, especially with heroin. In the recent years, the usage and overdose rates of heroin and other opiates have unfortunately skyrocketed Jim Shroba, a special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in St. Louis has noticed a direct increase of heroin users over the recent years. He says after Mexican cartels planted their own opium poppy fields and producing more of their own heroin instead of just transporting the Colombian