Articles: narcotic-antagonists.
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Clinical Trial
Efficacy of naltrexone in the treatment of chronic refractory itching in burn patients: preliminary report of an open trial.
Pruritus (itching) constitutes a source of severe distress for burn patients. The authors administered naltrexone to burn patients suffering from itching that was refractory to treatment with antihistamine and anticonvulsant medications to examine the efficacy of this medication as a treatment for pruritus in burn patients. Nineteen burn patients admitted to the Hallym Burn Center at Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital in Seoul, Korea, with burns over 40.32% (+/-18.3) of their total body surface were recruited for this study. ⋯ The authors observed a significant decrease in itching sensations after 2 weeks of treatment with naltrexone (z = -3.32, P = .001). Scratching activity was also decreased in 44.5% (+/-20.5) of subjects. The authors propose that naltrexone constitutes a potential antipruritic medication for burn patients suffering from treatment-refractory itching.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Early outcomes following low dose naltrexone enhancement of opioid detoxification.
Although withdrawal severity and treatment completion are the initial focus of opioid detoxification, post-detoxification outcome better defines effective interventions. Very low dose naltrexone (VLNTX) in addition to methadone taper was recently associated with attenuated withdrawal intensity during detoxification. ⋯ VLNTX addition was also associated with higher rates of negative drug tests for opioids and cannabis and increased engagement in outpatient treatment after one week. Further studies are needed to test the utility of this approach in easing the transition from detoxification to various follow-up treatment modalities designed to address opioid dependence.
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Expert Opin Pharmacother · Mar 2009
Randomized Controlled TrialCombined prolonged-release oxycodone and naloxone improves bowel function in patients receiving opioids for moderate-to-severe non-malignant chronic pain: a randomised controlled trial.
This randomised, double-blind, double-dummy, parallel-group multicentre study assessed the impact of a total daily dose of 60-80 mg oral oxycodone prolonged-release (PR)/naloxone PR (OXN PR) as fixed-ratio combination for patients with opioid-induced constipation (OIC) having moderate-to-severe, non-malignant pain. ⋯ This study shows that the fixed-ratio combination of OXN PR is superior to OXY PR alone in terms of bowel function, while providing effective equivalent analgesia.
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Int. J. Drug Policy · Mar 2009
Evaluation of the Staying Alive programme: training injection drug users to properly administer naloxone and save lives.
In response to the high rates of opiate-related overdoses and deaths in the United States, a number of overdose prevention programmes have been implemented that include training drug users to administer naloxone, an opiate antagonist. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the Staying Alive (SA) programme in Baltimore, Maryland, which trained drug users to prevent and respond to opiate overdose using techniques including mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and administration of naloxone. ⋯ Results from this study provide additional evidence to support the effectiveness of overdose prevention training programmes that include skills building for drug users to administer naloxone.
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The United States is in the midst of a prolonged and growing epidemic of accidental and preventable deaths associated with overdoses of licit and illicit opioids. For more than 3 decades, naloxone has been used by emergency medical personnel to pharmacologically reverse overdoses. ⋯ Current evidence supports the extensive scaleup of access to naloxone. We present advantages and limitations associated with a range of possible policy and program responses.