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The effects of opioids essay
Thesis statement and outline for The Opioid Crisis in America
The effects of opioids essay
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Opioid overprescribing is becoming major epidemic in the united state. Epidemiologic data from 2012 National Survey on Drug use and health states that 12.5 million American reported opioids abuse (3). Medications such as prescribed opioids have the ability to generate physical and psychoactive effects, which can alter consciousness and the ability to feel pain. Almost all civilizations have individuals who choose to use these drugs and often become dependent on the substance they are using. It is important to recognize though that these drugs do create some harmful effects such as altering natural functioning areas of the brain. They also help aids acute and chronic pain. From a historical prescriptive, opioid prescription shows that opioids …show more content…
Drug Metabolism rate, which is the time that the body takes to burn and convert medication to active substances. Some ethic groups has extremely rapid metabolism rate which could led to higher amount of the medication in the blood and increase risk of death.
Another leading cause for opioids misuse is the ability of the physician to precisely convert equianalgesic opioids dose that is used when the opioids type or route of administration need to change. For instance the physician might need to change the type of opioids used fro patient after going though a difficult surgery. Falling to calculate the equal amount of the dose can lead to change of drug concentration in the blood. Thus patient may not feel the effect of opioids. Even worse he or she might take inadequate or excessive amount of medication.
Opiates based on their effects on the central nervous system of the body can reduce the pain, change the mood and behavior of the person. Thus, these drug lead to physical and psychological dependence. All around the globe drug abuse and dependence is becoming wildly common. Opioids drug dependence develops due to the effect of these drugs in alteration neurological functioning on temporary basis. Therefor, the risk of developing dependence when opioids are used in regular bases is sufficiently
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The availability of opioids without a prescription or getting the medication from a friend or family member for free is one reason behind opioids addiction. It is important to know that some of them are illegal and have medical psychological effect and thus it is not safe to use them. One example is heroin which can change brain function make its user to perform unusual activities because of their effects of giving feelings of having different energy levels and more confidence. Consequently, taken in large quantity can result if feelings of anxiety and hallucinations and it can also result in death of the user. Authorities in health care system must constrain opioids availability and locate them to
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.”
Almost one hundred years ago, prescription drugs like morphine were available at almost any general store. Women carried bottles of very addictive potent opiate based pain killers in their purse. Many individuals like Edgar Allen Poe died from such addictions. Since that time through various federal, state and local laws, drugs like morphine are now prescription drugs; however, this has not stopped the addiction to opiate based pain killers. Today’s society combats an ever increasing number of very deadly addictive drugs from designer drugs to narcotics to the less potent but equally destructive alcohol and marijuana. With all of these new and old drugs going in and out of vogue with addicts, it appears that the increase of misuse and abuse is founded greater in the prescription opiate based painkillers.
By the year 2000 opioid medicine containing oxycodone etc., are being abused and misused and more than doubled in 10 years’ time.
Opioid’s chemical composition consist of many highly addictive substances which cause the human body to become quickly tolerant. Many opioid users become addictive to the substance because the doctors have been over prescribing. “In the United States, there were 14,800 annual prescribed opioid (PO) deaths in 2008” with the US having less restrictions (Fischer, Benedikt, et al 178). The United States have implemented more regulations so that “high levels of PO-related harms been associated with highly potent oxycodone formulas” will decrease (Fischer, Benedikt, et al 178). With the regulations, it does not change the fact that opioids are is destructive. The regulations assistance by lessening the probability of patients becoming addictive to opioid. There are numerous generations that are effected and harmed by the detrimental effects of opioids on opioid-dependent patients.
Opioids are prescribed to help people; prescription opioids can be used to treat moderate-to-severe pain and are often prescribed following surgery or injury, or for health conditions such as cancer (Prescription Opioids). When taken as directed, opioids are safe and effective treatment options for relieving debilitating chronic pain (Highsmith). Doctors have screening protocol they follow before prescribing an opioid. Doctors ask patients about their past to see if any substance abuse was present, to rule out patients with a higher risk of becoming addicted to prescription opioids. Nonetheless, if the medication is used as directed, not only is your risk of addiction minimal, the odds of enjoying a better quality of life will be in your favor (Highsmith). In other words, doctors are doing their part to prevent prescription opioid drug abuse. Actually, dishonest people are the ones at
In the United States, opioid addiction rates have majorly increased . Between 2000-2015 more than half a million individuals have died from Opioid overdose, and nearly 5 million people have an opioid dependence which has become a serious problem. The Center for Disease control reports that there are 91 deaths daily due to opioid abuse. Taking opioids for long periods of time and in
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.
Addiction is a complex psychiatric disorder that consists of social and psychological factors, but at its most basic level it is a biological process. Addiction may come in many forms, but its primary choice of substance is drugs. In particular, prescription medications in the form of pills have become a major health problem, not only to those addicted but the clinicians who prescribe them. In order to fully understand this disorder, considering what brain mechanisms and functions are involved with addiction, the next area to look into is the factors that make the prescription drugs so addictive, along with long term effects, and to discover any new treatment options out in practice today, whether it be through medicine and/or counseling.
An ethical dilemma that is currently happening in the medical field regards pain management. Doctors as well as other medical professionals are faced with this ethical decision on whether to prescribe strong pain medication to patients who claim to be experiencing pain, or to not in skepticism that the patient is lying to get opioids and other strong medications. “Opioids are drugs that act on the nervous system to relieve pain. Continued use in addition to abuse can lead to physical dependence and withdrawal symptoms,” (Drug Free World Online). Opioids are often prescribed to patients experiencing excruciating pain, but doctors are faced with prescribing these drugs as an ethical issue because only a patient can measure the
It doesn’t matter if these patients will become addicted, because these doctors are so sure of it that they overprescribe just so the patients won’t come back asking for more in the near future. Due to the inconsideration and selfishness of these doctors “Prescription drug abuse is the fastest growing form of substance abuse”(Hanson). To make matters worse, a majority of these doctors aren't even warning their patients about the type of drug they are dealing with. According to the National Institute on drug abuse, opioids are a class of drugs that include the illegal drug heroin, causing them to be highly addictive(Thomas et al). Not only is it clear to see that these doctors are at fault here for even prescribing a drug they know can be as addicting as heroin, but also because they aren't doing anything to fix their mistakes, much less admit that they are at fault here. Doctors are to blame for these addiction, not the patients. Doctors are also to blame for not giving these unhealthy addictions the attention they deserve. After all, they are required by the FDA to give risk evaluations when the risks of the drug outweigh the benefits(Blake). Yet on the contrary to popular belief these doctors aren’t giving those evaluations out, if they were more deaths could
The rate of death due to prescription drug abuse in the U.S. has escalated 313 percent over the past decade. According to the Congressional Quarterly Transcription’s article "Rep. Joe Pitt Holds a Hearing on Prescription Drug Abuse," opioid prescription drugs were involved in 16,650 overdose-caused deaths in 2010, accounting for more deaths than from overdoses of heroin and cocaine. Prescribed drugs or painkillers sometimes "condemn a patient to lifelong addiction," according to Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This problem not only affects the lives of those who overdose but it affects the communities as well due to the convenience of being able to find these items in drug stores and such. Not to mention the fact that the doctors who prescribe these opioids often tend to misuse them as well. Abusing these prescribed drugs can “destroy dreams and abort great destinies," and end the possibility of the abuser to have a positive impact in the community.
Meera, A. (2011). Pain and Opioid Dependence: Is it a Matter of Concern. Indian Journal Of
"When some one who has been abusing an opioid like Xanax, Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, or Dilaudid, and get off them often times if they try to start taking them again they don't realize they cant take as much as they used to and take what they were taking before and thats lead to a lot of overdoses." he said.
More than ⅓ of Americans will use narcotics in their lifetime and nearly 10% of the American population is addicted to narcotics (“Narcotic Facts”). These drugs can be very addictive, even when they are taken as prescribed. When taken for recreational use, a tolerance develops quickly which will eventually lead to a dependence. Narcotics make up a great number of the most abused drug to cause criminal activity and addiction which requires medical treatment. A majority of people who are addicted to painkillers do not realize they have a problem. Not only that, but little research actually goes into quite a few of the medications prescribed. Drug companies are known to sometimes be less than honest with the FDA to rush drugs into the market before their competitors have the chance to. Many doctors do not know of this. Also, when drug companies to have honest reports, testing of the drug occurs to groups of healthy populated people. People who would suffer adverse reactions to the drug would not be included in the testing of the medication. According to a 2014 Newsweek articles, it is stated that “even systematic reviews, which help set standard medical practices, are subject to the influence of drug companies… The consequences of exclusion or delay of trial data have ranged from frustration to mass fatalities” (Wolford). It was very common for a patient to have their prescription stolen. There have been many incidents of users breaking into homes to raid pill cabinets or even snag a bottle off of a loved ones. As long as opiates are exposed to the outside world, users will be willing to do anything to get their hands on a bottle. This dependence is due to the strength of effects these pills can release on the human body. Because narcotics are such strong painkillers, there is the chance of the natural opioid system in the body will be blocked by the substituted amount of chemicals being
Besides the individual symptoms that these drugs possess, any abuse of medications can cause addiction, change in mood, perceptions, behavior judgment, and all of these risks increase the chances when being mixed with actual prescribed medications, alcohol, or illicit drugs. Countless abusers believe in the misconceptions that make abusing seem okay. For instance, they believe that since they’re prescribed from a doctor, it means that they’re safe for everyone as well as being legal for anyone to induce them. People also may think that prescription drugs like painkillers are not addictive and can be taken to solve every illness without an expiration date. The knowledge of the damages and misconceptions that abusing prescription medications lead to are nonexistent to