|
What Is Methadone?
Methadone is a synthetic narcotic. It is used legally to treat addiction to narcotics and to relieve severe pain, often in individuals who have cancer or terminal illnesses. Methadone had first been synthesized by German chemists before World War II. Although methadone has been legally available in the United States since 1947, more recently it has emerged as a drug of abuse. This trend may be driven in part by the ready availability of the drug as it increasingly is used in the treatment of narcotic addiction and to relieve chronic pain.
Some methadone tablets are designed to be swallowed intact, while others are intended to be dissolved first in liquid. Likewise, methadone is available either as a ready-to-drink solution or as a concentrate, which must be mixed first with water or fruit juice. Methadone also is available as a liquid that is administered via injection.
When used to treat narcotic addiction, methadone suppresses withdrawal symptoms for 24 to 36 hours. Individuals who are prescribed methadone for treatment of heroin addiction experience neither the cravings for heroin nor the euphoric rush that are typically associated with use of that drug.
Methadone is a legal medication produced by licensed and approved pharmaceutical companies using quality control standards. Under a physician's supervision, it is administered orally on a daily basis with strict program conditions and guidelines. Methadone does not impair cognitive functions. It has no adverse effects on mental capability, intelligence, or employability. It is not sedating or intoxicating, nor does it interfere with ordinary activities such as driving a car or operating machinery. Patients are able to feel pain and experience emotional reactions. Methadone relieves the craving associated with opiate addiction. For methadone patients, typical street doses of heroin are ineffective at producing euphoria, making the use of heroin less desirable.
|
| Drug
Abuse Trends |
| While most illicit drug abuse, particularly
for middle and high school teens, began to slow or actually
decline in 2002 after a half a decade increase, abuse of prescription
drugs continues to climb:
- Over the past decade-and-a-half, the number of teen and
young adult (ages 12 to 25) new abusers of prescription
painkillers such as oxycodone (OxyContin) or hydrocodone
(Vicodin) has grown five-fold (from 400,000 in the mid-eighties
to 2 million in 2000).
- New misusers of tranquilizers such as diazepam (Valium)
or alprazolam (Xanax, called "zanies" by youth)-medicine
normally used to treat anxiety or tension-went up nearly
50 percent in one year (700,000 in 1999 to 1 million in
2000).
- More than 17 percent of adults over 60, wittingly or not,
abuse prescription drugs. In 2000, more than 19 million
prescriptions for ADHD drugs were filled, a 72 percent increase
since 1995.
- An estimated 3 to 5 percent of school-age children have
ADHD. A study of students in Wisconsin and Minnesota showed
34 percent of ADHD youth age 11 to 18 report being approached
to sell or trade their medicines, such as Ritalin.
- Among 12- to 17-year-olds, girls are more likely than
boys to use psychotherapeutic drugs non-medically.
|
|
