Journal of addiction medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Comparisons of analgesic potency and side effects of buprenorphine and buprenorphine with ultra-low-dose naloxone.
Opioids are the most effective pain medication available, yet concerns about their safety may limit their administration to those in need. In efforts to identify analgesics with lower potential for abuse and dependence, recent evidence suggests that combinations of opioids with ultra-low doses of the opioid antagonist naloxone may enhance the analgesic effect with increased safety. This study investigated the use of buprenorphine (0.3 mg) plus ultra-low-dose naloxone (0.02 mg) (BUP + ULDN) as compared with buprenorphine alone (0.3 mg) (BUP) for the treatment of pain. ⋯ These findings suggest that BUP + ULDN is not more effective in reducing pain than BUP.
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Prescription opioid misuse: characteristics of earliest and most recent memory of hydromorphone use.
Prescription opioid use is highly prevalent and a major physician concern. However, little is known about how individuals initiate into use of these medications or how they use them later in life. Hydromorphone is a medication of particular interest given its subjective similarities to heroin and tendency to be misused by illicit opioid users. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of initial, and more recent, hydromorphone use occasions as remembered by a population of individuals in treatment for their opioid use. ⋯ There was considerable variability in characteristics of hydromorphone use initiation among individuals enrolled in low-threshold methadone maintenance treatment. However, later use of hydromorphone was remarkably consistent across individuals and shares many characteristics previously documented for heroin use. Additional investigations into hydromorphone are warranted, particularly given previous findings regarding the prevalence of nonmedical use of this drug and its similarities to heroin.