OPIUM ADDICTION
Opium addiction is mainly due to the overdosage and unnecessary ingestion of opioid agonists in a continuous and regular manner without a proper medical need.
The most commonly used opioid which rapidly develops addiction is Pethidine which is a weak Miu receptor opioid agonist legally used in many health care centers as a pre and post-operative pain reliever. The drug is very problematic as the addiction develops rapidly even by a one-time usage. Many healthcare workers are becoming pethidine addicts.
Diamorphine (Diacetylmorphine) or 'Heroin' is the one to produce rapid CNS effects and addiction than its parent compound morphine because it is non-polar and highly lipid-soluble and can pass very easily into the brain system whereas morphine which is polar and water-soluble cannot. But heroin after entering into the brain system is hydrolyzed to yield the potent Miu agonist morphine. Unlike pethidine heroin has no medical value and possession of it is highly illegal.
Treatments
Opium overdose can be treated conveniently by the repeated intravenous injection of the antagonist Naloxone every one hour until the patient gets relieved from the coma and respiratory depression.
The opium addiction can be treated by the administration of Naltrexone which has a long duration of action.
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