i_luv_chemicals
Bluelighter
References would be appreciated. Thanks
"There is no evidence of any organ toxicity attributable to the prolonged use of sustained-release opioids."Taken from:
http://www.hosppract.com/issues/2000/09/brook.htm?3b0bce900 (that is a VERY good article about chronic opioid therapy with a lot of attention to sustained release opioids)
You can gwet your own refrences if you go to any search engine and type "Online Medical Journals" and then dig through the reasults.. some are pay services (you get the summary for free but have to pay for the article) while others give you like 4 free articles then you must pay... some are flat-out free but they have a very limited database .. your best bet is to hit your local college library as they often have free database searches (if you live near a college) ..
I'm sure someone will have some refrences, but it's not our job to do your work...
Originally posted by blahblahblah:
It is a common known fact that methadone usage long term can cause damage to the body, i.e. teeth, gums and a few other things. So to answer your question correctly opiates (namely methadone) can cause damage to your body even if used correctly over extended time periods.
Damage to your teeth? Oh c'mon now, do you homework:
Like all opiates, methadone is not good for your teeth because it can restrict the production of saliva which is one of the body’s natural defences against plaque – the commonest cause of tooth decay.
Methadone is not as bad for your teeth as sweet drinks or eating sweets.
CF: http://www.ysas.org.au/treatment/methadone.html
It elaborates as to how you can keep your teeth healthy ...
Want some more?
Question: I heard that methadone gets in your bones and rots your teeth. Is that true?
That is absolutely false. Methadone has been used for the treatment of opioid-dependency for more than 35 years in millions of patients. The effects of methadone on the health of those persons has probably been studied more thoroughly than for any other medication in all of medicine. Dr. Mary Jeanne Kreek, MD, one of the best known and leading researchers in the field of methadone maintenance treatment has summed-up the findings:
"The most important medical consequence of [ongoing] methadone treatment, in fact, is the marked improvement in general health and nutritional status observed in patients as compared with their status at time of admission to treatment. Most medical complications observed in methadone maintenance patients are either related to ongoing preexisting chronic disease, especially chronic liver disease, the onset of which occurred prior to entry into methadone treatment, or to coexisting new diseases or illnesses or to ongoing polydrug or alcohol use."
[Source: Kreek, MJ. Health consequences associated with the use of methadone. In: Cooper JR, Altman F, Brown BS, Czechowicz D (eds). Research on the Treatment of Narcotic Addiction: State of the Art (NIDA Research Monograph 83-1201). Rockville, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse; 1983.]
Satisfied?
Originally posted by Music4myMind:
Interesting...it was my understanding that opiates such as heroin DO affect one's bone marrow - which would explain the incredible aching of the bones that one undergoes when in withdrawals.
You get deep muscle and bone aches durring withdrawal as it's the bodies way of manifesting physical pain in hopes of satisifying a somewhat psychological/somewhat physical dependance .. it's another reason doctors don't like to get a patient on opioids - it will kill the pain, yes, but the body can then manifest physical pain to quench it's psychological needs - for instance, say you have mild back pain and you're started on opioids, when devoid of the narcotics the pain may seem to be worse, when the reality is this is 100% psychological...