Opioids are the class of drugs that are naturally found in the opium poppy plants. They are prescription medications that are used for the treatment of chronic or acute pain. Among society, these drugs are widely feared for their association with addiction, abuse, and adverse effects.
Because these drugs can make you feel relaxed, they are often also used for non-medical reasons. This is a dangerous condition because opioids can become highly addictive. Heroin is one of the world’s most dangerous opioids, and it is never used for medical reasons.
Morphine, codeine, fentanyl, Vicodin, etc. are among some of the popularly used opioids.
What is the Opioid Crisis?
Daily, around 130[1] Americans die due to the accidental overdose or misuse of these drugs. Prescription opioids are safe to use for the short term, but their prolonged and unmonitored usage can have adverse effects. This health crisis, due to the misuse of these drugs, is termed as an “Opioid crisis.”
History
This epidemic came in three waves. The first wave of the opioid epidemic started back in 1991[2] as a result of many pharmaceutical companies advertising their new opioid pain relief pills. Because of the extensive marketing of these drugs and being presented as having low risks, doctors started prescribing these drugs to pain relief patients without much consideration. This lead to the rise of overdose deaths and the opioid crisis.
The second wave started in 2010[3]. In this year alone, 16,651[4] people died because of a drug overdose. A rise in deaths due to Heroin was also noticed, and Heroin alone was responsible for 3,036[5] deaths.
Just three years later, the third wave began in 2013[6] with the Fentanyl opioid being the leading catalyst. From 2013-2016 around 20,000 deaths occurred due to Fentanyl and related drugs. This later rose to 47,600[7] deaths in 2017. These deaths have increased 6x from 1999-2017.
This not only leads to deaths but an increase in addiction. Around 80%[8] of Heroin addicts admitted the fact that an opioid drug prescription later leads them to become addicted to the drug.
The Current Conditions of the Opioid Epidemic
Although this epidemic was responsible for a rise in the number of deaths due to prescription overdose, However, in 2018, a significant improvement was observed. According to CDC reports, Fatalities from prescription opioids decreased by 15 percent, and this indicated a lower death rate due to heroin overdose. U.S drug deaths finally reduced for the first time during decades in this year.
These results showed a beacon of hope, but still, according to CDC reports, casualties due to fentanyl overdose were prevalent in the west. Overdosing is not the only problem; it’s the thousands of people that need intervention and opioid addiction treatment.
There are lots of gaps in knowledge related to these issues. New research is being done to uncover lots of things that could help understand different aspects of the condition and provide better solutions to the practitioners and patients alike. Among various elements researched, Buprenorphine is a hopeful point of interest that has shown to be very helpful.
Buprenorphine Treatment and Patient Health
In a study conducted for the effects of Buprenorphine, 9000 individuals were examined from 2013 to 2017. The individuals in this study had a minimum of 6 months of prescriptions and to explore the effects of Buprenorphine over more extended periods, the participants were divided into groups of people who had medicines form 6-9, 9-12, 12-15 and 15-18 months. Their other medications, hospital visits, and emergency departmental visits were also taken into consideration for accurate results.
The study showed that people who had prescriptions for six months had 40% higher hospital visits. In comparison, the people whose prescriptions were divided into 6-9 or 15-18 months and received fewer dosages throughout this time and visited the hospitals less frequently.
This editorial noticed that people whose prescriptions stretched to 2 years were generally better as compared to people whose treatments were concentrated in shorter periods such as six months. Could this mean that more time for prescriptions was better than short-lived periods? Would prescriptions distribute over 3 years give better results as compared to 2 years?
The answer is not a concrete yes because other factors also matter, such as wellness, social, and other variables of a patient’s life. Positive motivation also enhances recovery. The editorial concluded that both continuing prolonged treatment for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) and taking care of a patient’s well being showed significant improvements in the long run.
Other Recent Studies about OUD
Below are a few other findings of recent studies that provide an update on the Opioid Epidemic.
- A recent study found that increased amounts of opioid use can change our brain’s natural emotional plasticity and induce alterations that remain even after you stop using these drugs. These emotional changes cause a further craving for opioids. Rats were also tested with withdrawal symptoms and showed negative behavior in the absence of opioids, similar to humans.
- Research is also being done with a combination of neurobiological analysis, phenotyping, biology, and genetics to create an effective addiction-free solution for chronic illness and depression that can effectively replace opioids.
- Another study showed that within youths, only one-third of people had access to medical help after a non-fatal opioid overdose. This means only 1 out of 54 adults have access to pharmacotherapy, and others get no treatment. From 2009-2015 around 3,800 youngsters were recorded in the medical databases having a non-fatal overdose. This group had an overdose rate of 44.1/100,00. About 70% of these subgroups received no treatment within the next 30 days of the overdose. Only 29% of individuals had access to behavioral health services, and only 2% received pharmacotherapy. The authors of these studies concluded that “Interventions are urgently needed to link youths to treatment after an overdose, with priority placed on improving access to pharmacotherapy.”
- Another CDC’s 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey of high school students found out that those who misused opioids also showed other problematic behaviors as compared to average adolescents. A total of 22 harmful practices were observed in these children, including driving without a seatbelt or under the toxic influence, carrying weapons and having suicidal thoughts, etc.
Future of the Opioid Epidemic
The rising fatalities due to drugs, suicides, and alcohol among Americans without college degrees were termed as “Deaths of Despair” by the economists Anne Case and Angus Deaton. Opioids have played a significant role in these deaths. After looking at the different demographics, The Journalist Charles Lehman suggested that America has a severe polysubstance problem, and fentanyl is among the top culprits. Fentanyl is inexpensive, and it’s further adding to this grave crisis. Because of it, OUD is a crisis that might persist for some more time.
Patients with OUD have a higher risk of overdose. But there’s hope. The best prevention and rehabilitation measures that seem to show better results are the Buprenorphine treatments for two years. However, the situation is getting under control as the fatalities have decreased over time. Further research and studies are essential to understand this crisis better and find new means for understanding and treating this crisis.
Contact BoardPrep Recovery by calling 866.796.4720 to find help for opioid addiction.
[1] “Overdose – fact 1004 | truth – The Truth.” https://www.thetruth.com/o/the-facts/fact-1004. Accessed 8 Mar. 2020.
[2] “History of the Opioid Epidemic – Poison Control.” https://www.poison.org/articles/opioid-epidemic-history-and-prescribing-patterns-182. Accessed 8 Mar. 2020.
[3] “History of the Opioid Epidemic – Poison Control.” https://www.poison.org/articles/opioid-epidemic-history-and-prescribing-patterns-182. Accessed 8 Mar. 2020.
[6] “History of the Opioid Epidemic – Poison Control.” https://www.poison.org/articles/opioid-epidemic-history-and-prescribing-patterns-182. Accessed 8 Mar. 2020.
[7] “History of the Opioid Epidemic – Poison Control.” https://www.poison.org/articles/opioid-epidemic-history-and-prescribing-patterns-182. Accessed 8 Mar. 2020.
[8] “History of the Opioid Epidemic – Poison Control.” https://www.poison.org/articles/opioid-epidemic-history-and-prescribing-patterns-182. Accessed 8 Mar. 2020.
