In the last issue of Asia Pacific Journal of Medical Toxicology (APJMT), editor-in-chief, Dr. Reza Afshari focused on an important contemporary issue of empowering toxicology in the Asia pacific region (1). The topic drew our attention and we would like to share the situation of Bangladesh in light of this editorial. Dr. Afshari correctly emphasized on forming national societies of medical toxi...

Legal and medical practitioners need to remember that, with respect to drug analysis, there are two distinct disciplines in analytical toxicology concerned with human biological matrices, namely clinical and forensic toxicology. Both fields use similar analytical techniques designed to detect and quantify drugs, chemicals and poisons in fluids or tissues. In clinical toxicology, analytical resu...

Facial pruritus associated with spinal opiate analgesia in man is thought to result either from release of histamine or from imbalance of sensory modulation secondary to spread of opiate to the medulla or fourth ventricle. There is another possibility: the sensory imbalance may be secondary to rostral spread of opiate effect by nervous transmission. Evidence is adduced in support of possible an...

Objective(s): Oxytocin is involved in modulation of many brain-mediated functions. In the present study, we investigated the central effects of oxytocin and its receptor antagonist, atosiban on inflammatory pain. The contribution of opiate receptors was explored using non-selective and selective antagonists. Materials and Methods: The fourth ventricle of the brain of anesthetized rats was impla...

In the editorial by Dr. Reza Afshari “Empowerment of Medical Toxicology in Asia Pacific Region” published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Medical Toxicology (APJMT) (1), the role of Asia Pacific Association of Medical Toxicology (APAMT) in promoting medical toxicology has been discussed and some suggestions have been made regarding how to promote this field of medical sciences in the region. The...

of prescribing injectable heroin and methadone to opiate-dependent drug users: associated health gains and harm reductions. Active heroin injectors' perceptions and use of methadone maintenance treatment: cynical performance or self-prescribed risk reduction? Substance It takes your heart: the image of methadone maintenance in the addict world and its effects on recruitment into treatment. Opia...

INTRODUCTION The aim of the present study was to perform reliability and validity analyses of the Turkish version of the Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale which is used to determine the severity of opiate withdrawal. METHODS Initially, the Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS) was translated into Turkish and subsequently back-translated into English. The originality of the back-translated ve...

BACKGROUND A number of research studies on the genetics of opiate dependence have focused on the μ-opioid receptor (OPRM1), which is a primary target for opiates. This study aims to identify genetic polymorphisms within the OPRM1 gene involved in response to the biopsychosocial treatment in opiate-dependent individuals of Arab descent. METHODS Unrelated Jordanian Nationals of Arab descent (N ...

Chronic opiate use produces persistent changes in brain neurons that are expressed as adverse effects, including physical dependence and compulsive drug-seeking behavior. Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal response to stress also occurs with chronic opiate administration and has been implicated as a contributing factor to continued substance abuse. This study provides the first...

UNLABELLED Introduction Many Iranian opiate users live with family members and family atmosphere can be influential on reducing such social behaviors of opiate users as substance use and relapses. This paper reports the impact of family atmosphere on relapse behavior as a part of the findings of a larger study that explored the relapse process among Iranian opiate users. METHODS In this quali...