Drug Methadone

Using Methadone: Campaign on Using Methadone Safely

FDA and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) have launched a campaign to increase awareness about the risks associated with using methadone and how to minimize them. Methadone has long been used to treat drug addiction, but it is now also being used to treat moderate to severe pain in patients who don’t respond to non-narcotic pain medications. Healthcare professionals and patients need to understand the power and potential dangers of methadone in order to reduce the risk and get the maximum benefit from the drug. Healthcare providers should make sure patients understand that methadone remains in the body even after the pain relief wears off, so taking an additional dose to relieve pain while the earlier dose is still in the body could lead to an unintentional overdose. Also, methadone interacts with many other drugs and supplements. These interactions could decrease a patient’s pain relief, or cause a toxic buildup of methadone in the body. That could lead to dangerous changes in breathing or heart beat that could be fatal. Here are some of the things patients should do if they take methadone: •Share your complete medical history with your healthcare provider, especially if you are using methadone for the first time. •Take methadone exactly as prescribed and be sure to follow all your doctor’s directions. •Never take more methadone than the amount prescribed, at the times prescribed. If you miss a dose or feel it is not working, do not …

Using Methadone: Conflict Over Surfer’s Death
Filed under: Andy Irons , RIP , TMZ Sports The family of surfing legend Andy Irons is adamant the former world champ died as a result of complications from heart disease — and nothing else — however, the official autopsy report shows drugs were a factor. Seven months after Irons died in a Dallas hotel room, Andy’s family released a statement today explaining Irons died from a heart attack …
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Using Methadone: Methadone rubbed into baby’s gums
A trial is told the father of a baby girl, born addicted to methadone, rubbed the heroin-substitute into her gums just hours after she was born.
Read more on BBC News

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