To the Editor: There has recently been an explosion of interest in, and research on, the personality of opiate addicts. Individuals with substance use disorders suffer from high rates of non-substance use psychiatric disorders. A survey found axis II disorders in 90% of opiate addicts. Another survey showed that there is a relationship between opiate dependence and some particular personality p...

BACKGROUND Substance misuse services within the United Kingdom have traditionally been oriented to opiate and crack users, and attended predominantly by male service users. Groups who do not fit this demographic, such as women or those whose primary drug of choice is neither heroin nor crack, have tended to be underrepresented in services. In addition, there can be stigma associated with tradit...

The role of SH groups in opiate-receptor interactions has been further examined. In activation by N-ethylmaleimide of sterospecific opiate binding by rat brain membrane fractions follows pseudo-first order kinetics and exhibits strong temperature dependence. The kinetics indicate that alkylation of a single SH group suffices to block opiate binding. Considerable protection from SH group inactiv...

AIM To survey and assess the drug dependence and abuse potential liability of buprenorphine among opiate abusers. METHODS Subjects of opiate dependence with history of buprenorphine use for 3 d at least were surveyed by interview. Physical dependence of buprenorphine was assessed using 30 items opiate withdrawal scale (OWS), which composed of 30 symptoms/signs. A 4-point scale was used to rat...

Opiate dependence among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients has been associated with negative clinical outcomes, yet few affected patients receive appropriate and coordinated treatment for both conditions. The introduction of buprenorphine maintenance therapy into HIV care settings provides an opportunity for providers to integrate treatment for opiate dependence into their pra...

Regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) are a family of proteins known to accelerate termination of effector stimulation after G protein receptor activation. RGS9-2, a brain-specific splice variant of the RGS9 gene, is highly enriched in striatum and also expressed at much lower levels in periaqueductal gray and spinal cord, structures known to mediate various actions of morphine and other opia...

BACKGROUND Clinical observation and experimental studies have indicated that a single exposure to morphine could induce tolerance and dependence. It has become a concern in clinical antinociceptive practice. However, the underling mechanism remains unknown. This study was designed to explore the changes of dopamine (DA) neuron activities in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) by employing a spectr...

AIMS Our objective was to compare the effectiveness of buprenorphine (BUP) and methadone maintenance treatment in opiate-addicted patients in a clinical nonexperimental setting. DESIGN We used a naturalistic observational prospective study of 24 months' duration. SETTING Subjects were enrolled and treated at a drug addiction outpatient clinic of the National Health System Local Unit in Mila...

BACKGROUND Violent conflicts disproportionately affect populations in low and middle-income countries, and exposure to conflict is a known risk factor for mental disorders and substance use, including use of illicit opiates. Opiate use can be particularly problematic in resource-limited settings because few treatment options are available and dependence can impede economic development. In this ...

BACKGROUND Methadone is a synthetic opiate mu receptor agonist that is widely used to substitute for illicit opiates in the management of opiate dependence. It helps prevent opiate users from injecting and sharing needles which are vehicles for the spread of HIV and other blood borne viruses. This study has the objective of determining the utility of daily methadone dose to predict retention ra...