Drug epidemic compare and contrast
Outline
- In 21st century, opioids are used for both medication and non-medication use.
- Opioids addiction is a global problem
- There is a higher use of drugs from opiate category
- Licit drugs is the leading cause of drug poisoning
- Prescription opioids have intrinsic abuse and euphoric effects
- Non-medication use of opioids results to heroin use
- Prescription opioids maximizes pain and adverse effects
- Opioids medication releases acute and chronic pain
Thesis: prescription opioids contributes to adverse health effects and this is due to the ‘environmental availability’ created by high prescriptions, social responsibility in drug use and high trading volume with pharmaceutical companies.
Drug epidemic compare and contrast
Drug epidemic is an issue which has affected the globe in terms of health and socioeconomic welfare. In 2012, research shown that 36million people are opioids abusers in worldwide and 2.1million are affected with substance use disorder and 467,000 suffer from heroin addiction in U.S (Nora & Volkow, 2014). The trend has led to devastating effects and there have been several cases of unintentional overdose deaths. Research also shows that there is a high rate of heroin abuse and non-prescribed use of opioids. In comparing both prescribed and non-prescribed drugs, it is important to understand that both have an adverse effect on health. For instance, prescription opioids are in the medications category and they are associated with abuse liability (Nora & Volkow, 2014). The opioid analgesics and abuse problem are contributed by the high rate of written and dispensed prescriptions, high rate of marketing and use of medication for various purposes. For example, prescription of opioid pain reliever has risen from 1991 to 2013 where the number has changed from 76million to 207million respectively.The higher rate of prescription has resulted to negative consequences such as mortality. Nonmedical use of the drug has resulted to abuse and mortality, and high rate of death due to opioids abuse has increased in 21st century (Paulozzi, Budnitz &Yongli, 2006). Compared with heroin and cocaine, opioids analgesic poisoning was the leading cause of death in 2002. An important point to note is that prescription opioids have the same affects as heroin in the brain. Both have an intrinsic effect especially for non-medical purposes. Opioids abuse happens when the drug is used for non- medical use where patients purchase the drugs in the streets. For example, a research showed that over 5% of children aged 12yeras use the drug non-medically. This brings adverse effects to the economy since insurance companies are forced to pay high health-care cost and high rate of morbidity and mortality (Paulozzi, Budnitz &Yongli, 2006). Other point is that even though opioid is a prescribed medication, both drugs have are associated with overdoing risk and addictiveness. For example, fatal heroin overdoses increased by 50% in U.S from 2000s to 2010 where they raised up to 2,789. It is important to understand that there is a relationship between prescription opioid and heroin use (Paulozzi, Budnitz &Yongli, 2006). In case of heroin, the number of men and women who are heroin users has increased and overdose of heroin results to adverse effects.
However, opioid play a fundamental role in minimizing pain and suffering as well as other adverse effects. Individuals who suffer from chronic pain are prescribed opioid therapy and majority develops tolerance and physical dependence (Nora & Volkow, 2014). Mostly, physicians prescribe opioids such as OxyContin where they are attached with opioid receptor to maximize pain. The medication plays a significant role in increasing a sense of well-being. Opioid medication is good for acute and chronic pain even though many people use it for non-medical use. For example, when Oxycontin and Vicodin are taken against the doctor’s prescription, they produce similar effect with heroin (Nora & Volkow, 2014). Both have a feeling of euphoria, addiction, drowsiness, impaired breathing and other health effects. Especially when the medication is injected, it causes impaired breathing and the depressed respiration leads to hypoxia which then results to brain damage and coma. Opioid addiction also results to long-term effects such as effect on brain’s white matter and stress response (Nora & Volkow, 2014).
Reference
Nora D. & Volkow, M.D. (2014). Prescription Opioid and Heroin Abuse. National Institute on Drug Abuse
(NIDA).
Retrieved from: https://www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida/legislative-activities/testimony-to-congress/2016/prescription-opioid-heroin-abuse
Paulozzi J. Leonard, Budnitz S. Daniel &Yongli Xi MS. (2006). Increasing deaths from opioid analgesics in
the United States. Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety, 2006; 15: 618–627.
Retrieved from:https://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdch/Increasing_Deaths_from_Opiod_Analgesics_in_US_339168_7.pdf
