OBJECTIVE   Prescription opioid analgesics are commonly prescribed for moderate to severe pain. An unintended consequence of prescribing opioid analgesics is the abuse and diversion of these medications. Tapentadol ER is a recently approved centrally acting analgesic with synergistic mechanisms of action: μ-opioid receptor agonism and inhibition of norepinephrine reuptake. We assessed the amoun...

Numerous studies have demonstrated that drugs of abuse activate the mesolimbic dopamine reward pathway, and it is widely held that this activation contributes to the motivational and positive reinforcing properties of these substances. However, there is evidence that endogenous opioid systems within this brain reward circuit also play a role in drug reinforcement and drug-seeking behavior. Usin...

BACKGROUND Drugs of dependence cause dopamine release in the rat striatum. Human neuroimaging studies have shown an increase in dopamine in the equivalent region in response to stimulants and other drugs. AIMS We tested whether opioids provoke dopamine release and its relationship to the subjective experience. METHOD In two combined studies 14 heroin addicts on methadone maintenance treatme...

OBJECTIVES To determine whether the prevalence of opioid use among patients requiring elective same-day admission (SDA) surgery is greater than the 2.5% prevalence found in the general population. Secondary objectives were to assess compliance with expert recommendations on acute pain management in opioid-tolerant patients and to examine clinical outcomes. METHODS A retrospective review of 81...

Morphine stimulates the internalization of mu-opioid receptors (MORs) in transfected cell models to a lesser degree than opioid peptides and other analgesic drugs, such as methadone, and previous studies have reported that morphine does not produce a detectable redistribution of MORs in neural tissue after either acute or chronic administration. Nevertheless, morphine produces profound physiolo...

Sex differences in the experience of clinical and experimental pain have been reported. However, the neurobiological sources underlying the variability in pain responses between sexes have not been adequately explored, especially in humans. The endogenous opioid neurotransmitters and mu-opioid receptors are centrally implicated in responses to stress, in the suppression of pain, and in the acti...

BACKGROUND Opioids are psychoactive analgesic drugs prescribed for pain relief and palliative care. Due to their addictive potential, effort and vigilance in controlling prescriptions is needed to avoid misuse and dependence. Despite the effort, the prevalence of opioid use disorder continues to rise. Opioid substitution therapies are commonly used to treat opioid dependence; however, there is ...

The development of new drugs to combat neuroinflammation is highly relevant as it opens up possibilities for the treatment a wide range diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s epilepsy, schizophrenia, depression, and others. Kappa-opioid agonists represent promising class compounds with а high potential be used in neurological conditions accompanied by neuroinflammation. aim study ...

Opioid abuse is a growing global problem. Current therapies for opioid target withdrawal symptoms and have several adverse side effects. There are no treatments to address opioid-induced neural adaptations associated with addiction. Preclinical research demonstrates interactions between the endogenous cannabinoid systems, suggesting that cannabinoids may be used treat addiction dependence. The ...

Abstract In response to the opioid crisis, US states have implemented policies reduce dispensing of opioids and curb drug mortality. Exploiting a long panel county-level data, we analyse combination demand- supply-side state evaluate their effect on per capita dispensed unintended fallouts drug-related crime. We demonstrate that only laws targeting supply for volume prescribed drugs, while dema...