The abuse of and addiction to opioids such as heroin,
morphine, and prescription pain relievers is a serious global problem that
affects the health, social, and economic welfare of all societies. It is
estimated that between 26.4 million and 36 million people abuse
opioids worldwide,[1] with an estimated 2.1 million people in the
United States suffering from substance use disorders related to prescription
opioid pain relievers in 2012 and an estimated 467,000 addicted to heroin.[2] The consequences of this
abuse have been devastating and are on the rise. For example, the number
of unintentional overdose deaths from prescription pain relievers has soared in
the United States, more than quadrupling since 1999. There is also
growing evidence to suggest a relationship between increased non-medical use of
opioid analgesics and heroin abuse in the United States.[3]
To address the complex problem of prescription opioid and
heroin abuse in this country, we must recognize and consider the special
character of this phenomenon, for we are asked not only to confront the
negative and growing impact of opioid abuse on health and mortality, but also
to preserve the fundamental role played by prescription opioid pain relievers
in healing and reducing human suffering. That is, scientific insight must
strike the right balance between providing maximum relief from suffering while minimizing
associated risks and adverse effects...
Below: Opioid Prescriptions Dispensed by US Retail Pharmacies
Below: Growing Evidence suggests that abusers of prescription opioids are shifting to heroin as prescription drugs become less available or harder to abuse. For example, a recent increase in heroin use accompanied a downward trend in OxyContin abuse following the introduction of an abuse-deterrent formulation of that medication (dashed vertical line)
Below: Trend in Prevalence of Heroin Use and Heroin Related Overdose Death in the US (1999-2012)
Below: Methadone Treatment Pre- and Post Release Increases Treatment Retention and Reduces Drug Use
Full article at: http://goo.gl/rNWF3T
By: Nora D. Volkow, M.D.
More at: https://twitter.com/hiv_insight
No comments:
Post a Comment