Posted by azdrugrehabctr on February 7, 2017 under Addiction Trends, Opiate Abuse | 
Despite being one of the most abused drugs in the United States, there is very little doctors can do when it comes to a heroin addiction. The most common methods of helping an addict is by prescribing them methadone or suboxone and encouraging them to enroll in a treatment program. And while these options are oftentimes beneficial and have helped many addicts overcome their addiction, many in the medical community wonder if more can be done to help these addicts. Recently, researchers have made progress examining and locating different parts of the brain that are responsible for encouraging addiction and making it more difficult for the addict to stop once they have become addicted. In order to capitalize on these new developments, one research group decided to investigate how this could help heroin addicts.
Focusing on the subthalamic nucleus, a part of the brain that is little is known about, researchers at The Scripps Research Institute treated heroin addicted rats with deep brain stimulation. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is the method of using small electrodes implanted on the brain to electrically stimulate certain areas of the brain. Researchers decided to use DBS and find out if they could help reduce the amount of heroin the rats self-administered. And, in fact they did find that DBS was helpful in reducing heroin intake and cravings among the rats. The research was actually so compelling that many believe that they are now able to transition into studying how DBS effects humans that are addicted to heroin.
“It has been very difficult to reduce heroin-seeking and taking in an animal model because heroin is such an addictive drug, but the results here are very impressive. This is the type of preclinical evidence that one needs, in order to start testing this strategy in humans,” explained Olivier George, associate professor at The Scripps Research Institute.
The more that is discovered about the brain and how different parts of it respond to drugs like heroin, the more the medical community can help come up with tailored treatment programs that help addicts. More research in the area of addiction is what will help reduce the heroin epidemic.
Posted by azdrugrehabctr on September 13, 2016 under Addiction Trends, AZ Drug Rehab News |
A new study shows that the most common time for cocaine addicts to be discharged from treatment is also the most probable time period for them to relapse. According to researchers, cocaine addicts are most likely to relapse between one and six months after abstinence. This is especially interesting because most treatment programs discharge patients one and three months after admittance.
“Results of this study are alarming in that they suggest that many people struggling with drug addiction are being released from treatment programs at the time they need the most support. Our results could help guide the implementation of alternative, individually tailored and optimally timed intervention, prevention, and treatment strategies,” explained Rita Goldstein, researcher at Icahn School of Medicine in Mt. Sinai in New York.
Researchers investigated 76 adults who were addicted to cocaine. These adults had all been abstinent for varying amounts of time. Some were cocaine-free for only two days. Some participants were sober from cocaine for one week, others one month, or six months and a few were sober for a year. Using EEG images, taken while the subjects were viewing pictures, some of which had to do with cocaine, researchers were able to better understand how the brains were working during these time intervals. Prior to, and after, the EEG, participants were required to fill out questionnaires and complete a monitoring test to determine levels of craving. The results showed that major cocaine cravings started to increase after 2 days to one week of abstinence. The cravings peaked between one to six months of cocaine sobriety.
Researchers are hopeful that this information will be used to educate families and shape treatment program curriculum. One reason for the popularity of a one to three-month program is that this has become the norm in treatment. Addicts are notorious for being difficult to agree to treatment, and it is especially difficult to get them to commit to longer time periods of treatment. Oftentimes families and loved ones make compromises on the length of the program to ensure that their loved one will check in. However, it is likely that most families are unaware that evidence is pointing to longer programs being more effective.
Posted by azdrugrehabctr on September 10, 2015 under Addiction Trends, AZ Drug Rehab News |
As part of the 2016 race for the presidency, Hillary Clinton has submitted her plan to target the growing drug problem in the United States. After listening to concerned citizens in New Hampshire and Iowa, Clinton has vowed to wage a strong attack against drug use and abuse. Her plan is to use $10 billion to increase drug prevention efforts locally, increase the treatment options for addicts and arm more first responders with life-saving doses of naloxone for those in the midst of an opiate overdose. Additionally, Clinton wants to spend part of the budget on further education for health providers to improve their skills in spotting and preventing early addiction signs.
“It’s time we recognize that there are gaps in our health care system that allow too many to go without care – and invest in treatment. It’s time we recognize that our state and federal prisons, were 65 percent of inmates meet medical criteria for substance use disorders, are no substitute for proper treatment – and reform our criminal justice system,” explained Clinton in her open letter to voters.
A major part of Clinton’s proposal is to treat addicts that are in prison. Currently, thousands of addicts are incarcerated for drug-related offenses and not receiving treatment for their problem. It has been found that that the recidivism rate for these offenders is incredibly high, as most of them go right back to their drug of choice after being released from prison. Because they are not receiving the proper treatment while in prison, addicts are bouncing back and forth from prison to the streets. This is a cycle that costs taxpayers millions of dollars and many believe can be addressed by solving the drug dependence that gets ignored while behind bars.
Clinton also developed an incentive for state governments to create more treatment options for addicts. For every $1 million spent by the state, Hillary proposes to grant $4 million towards the state’s efforts. While it is still early on in the presidential race, it is important that candidates are acknowledging the drug problem that has affected so many families throughout the country.
Drug addiction has been a focal point for several other candidates as well, and will be interesting to see how much of their platforms will revolve around the overall health of our nation and helping people inside our own country.
Posted by azdrugrehabctr on July 17, 2014 under AZ Drug Rehab News |
As the drug cartels in Latin and South America gain more and more control, the United States is seeing more and more illegal immigrants at its borders. Looking further into this problem shows that the drug activity in the south is spurring on more and more refugees attempting to come into the United States, some being forced to smuggle illegal drugs.
Due to the drug cartels taking hold of much of the human trafficking routes used to get people into the United States, those attempting to cross over are being forced to comply with what the drug cartels are demanding. If individuals cannot come up with the large amount of money the cartels want in order to get the people over the border those people are forced to smuggle in drugs. The cartels target those who cannot afford to pay for protection and in exchange strap large quantities of drugs onto the bodies of those attempting to get into the United States. The drug cartels are also recruiting individuals to smuggle in drugs for money.
One reporter commented, “By making these countries so dangerous and virtually unlivable for its poorest citizens, the cartels have effectively created an incentive for people to flee, thereby providing themselves with more clientele for their human smuggling business.” This is interesting because what it points out is that the drug cartels are cashing in on two lucrative businesses. They are reaping the benefits of the high demand for drugs by United States citizens and cashing in on those attempting a better life in the United States, because the cartels have made life in their own country so unlivable.
The U.S. government is aware that there is an increase in the amount of people attempting to get into the country, but some individuals do not think the government sees the correlation between the drug cartels and the increase in illegal immigrants. In order to really handle the problem, some are calling for the government to get more involved in the disbanding of the drug cartels. As the problem continues to grow many eyes are fixed on governmental solutions, but as stated in many areas of the drug addiction treatment field, reducing the demand for the drugs through effective treatment and prevention will also reduce the amount of drug trafficking that occurs. Boarder control is not the main problem.
Posted by azdrugrehabctr on March 26, 2014 under AZ Drug Rehab News |
A report surfaced this week that the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) is tightening its regulations on rehabilitation facilities throughout the state. One of the areas in focus seems to be the portion about the licensing of six-bed facilities.
Previously, treatment providers could bundle up several buildings on a property and list them as separate facilities, which was a way around the regulation of having to comply with more standards. One famous facility that has done this is Passages Malibu, which received a letter from the city stating they are no longer in compliance with state regulations. The DHCS issued a statement to the Malibu Times that exclaimed, “We will license all buildings as a single facility to discourage facilities from obtaining numerous six-bed licenses at one address. Although this was allowed in the past, we’re changing the license to a single license when the provider renews every two years.”
Given the recent levels of fraud detected in the state’s treatment system, the DHCS is also submitting to have nearly two dozen more code enforcement officers for inspections of facilities. Boutique rehabs have become somewhat of a cottage industry in certain parts of California, as high-priced facilities have been able to cater to wealthy clients. Malibu alone has nearly three dozen licensed facilities and multiple sober living homes as well.
There is apparently two sides to the problem that Malibu faces. On one side there are people who simply have a case of NIMBY, while on the other there are treatment programs intentionally skirting the law to increase profits rather than being respectful of the surrounding community. It is absolutely true that there is a shortage of treatment beds in this country, and it takes all different kinds of facilities to meet the needs of the various clientele. Hopefully there can be some middle ground when it comes to treatment center expansion and residential communities.
Posted by azdrugrehabctr on November 21, 2013 under Synthetic Drugs |
Last week the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) carried out its intent to place three more synthetic drug compounds on the Schedule I list as having no medicinal value and made them illegal. The compounds are powerful hallucinogens called synthetic phenethylamines.
The move from the DEA makes them outlawed for two years initially, at which point a decision can be made to have them become permanently illegal. According to a release the Administration, these drugs have been responsible for at least 19 deaths in the past year or so.
The abbreviate chemical names for the drugs are 25I-NBOMe, 25C-NBOMe and 25B-NBOMe and have reportedly been found in powdered form, liquid solutions on blotter paper and combined with edible items.
The DEA says that NBOMe compounds are substantially more potent than other hallucinogenic compounds, and the data suggest that extremely small amounts of these drugs can cause seizures, cardiac and respiratory arrest, and also death, as evidenced by the recorded loss of lives.
The continued pursuit of identifying and outlawing synthetic compounds have had the DEA constantly playing catch-up, and the aftermath caused by the new drugs in terms of damage to lives has been a difficult transition for treatment professionals. If you have a loved one in need of help for a problem with synthetic drugs of any kind, contact us today for treatment solutions.
