Drug Methadone

Methadone is known as a highly effective and powerful drug. It is a narcotic that belongs to the same family of opioids like heroin. Methadone is a long acting medication for pain relief. It is an effective opiod analgesic for severe pain. Because of its low cost and apparent efficacy in complex pain syndromes, it is increasingly being used as a first-line opioid. It is such a good pain medication for chronic pain sufferers and for helping narcotic dependents get through life without having to spend their existance trying to keep a steady supply of heroin around or nearby, just to physically get through a day.

Methadone is said to be well-tested medication that is safe and effective for the treatment of narcotic withdrawal and dependence. For more than 30 years, this synthetic narcotic has been used to treat opioid addiction. Heroin releases an excess of dopamine in the body and causes users to need an opiate that would continuously occupy the opioid receptor in the brain. Methadone occupies this receptor and is the stabilizing factor that permits heroin addicts to quit their addiction.  
Methadone should only be prescribed for patients with moderate to severe pain when their pain is not improved with other non-narcotic pain relievers. Pain relief from a dose of methadone lasts about 4 to 8 hours. However, methadone stays in the body much longer. It can last from 8 to 59 hours after it is taken. As a result, patients may feel the need for more pain relief before methadone is gone from the body. Methadone may build up in the body to a toxic level if it is taken too often, if the amount taken is too high, or if it is taken with certain other medicines or supplements.  

Normal results after the administration of methadone to treat chronic pain include the alleviation of the patient’s pain, at least to the point where the pain is bearable. On the other hand, results of methadone treatment to control heroin addiction, is that the patient reduces heroin intake almost immediately upon starting methadone treatments. This is usually followed by complete abstinence, usually within two weeks after starting treatment.

Like any controlled substance, there is a risk of abuse. When used as prescribed and under a physician’s care, research and clinical studies suggest that long-term use of Metahdone is medically safe. When methadone is taken under medical supervision, long-term maintenance causes no adverse effects to the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, bones, blood, brain, or other vital body organs. Methadone for pain relief produces no serious side effects, although some patients experience minor symptoms such as constipation, water retention, drowsiness, skin rash, excessive sweating, and changes in libido. Once methadone dosage is adjusted and stabilized or tolerance increases, these symptoms usually subside.

Methadone For Pain Relief: Avoiding Accidental Overdoses with Methadone

FDA has issued a Public Health Advisory cautioning practitioners about avoiding overdoses when they are prescribing methadone or managing patients taking this drug. Since the 1970s, methadone has been primarily used in treating drug abuse, but now it’s also being used increasingly for the treatment of pain. FDA issued the Advisory because of reports of life-threatening adverse events and death in patients receiving methadone for pain control. Part of the reason is that physicians prescribing methadone for pain relief may not fully understand the drug’s pharmacology and potential adverse effects. For example, methadone, like other opioids, causes respiratory depression. But in addition, it can also have effects on cardiac conduction, leading to prolonged QT intervals and serious arrhythmias. Methadone also interacts with many other drugs, some of which can slow methadone’s elimination from the body and thus increase the likelihood of overdose and adverse effects related to either respiratory depression or cardiac arrhythmias. Overdoses can also occur because methadone remains in the body much longer than the drug’s analgesic effect lasts. So if a patient takes more methadone to extend the duration of pain relief, he or she may be at serious risk of respiratory depression. The Advisory lists several recommendations for health care professionals, including closely monitoring patients on this drug, especially when starting treatment or adjusting the dose. This should be done …

Methadone For Pain Relief: Opioids cause of 50,000 U.S. ER visits
SALT LAKE CITY, June 14 (UPI) — Opioids — pain-relief drugs like methadone, morphine and oxycodone — were responsible for nearly 50,000 U.S. emergency room visits in 2006, researchers say.
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