Addiction Treatment Center

Michigan City, IN – ( 219 ) 873-1777
Munster, IN – ( 219 ) 595-0300

Category: Opioid Addiction Treatment

Is Buprenorphine the Best Option for Treating Opioid Addiction?

Posted on by AllianceMD

Buprenorphine is an FDA approved medication that is prescribed for treatment of opioid addiction. As part of medication-assisted treatment program designed by the team working in the addiction, Buprenorphine or its Formulation with Naloxone, commonly addressed as Suboxone, is very effective in overcoming Narcotic and Opioid addiction. This medicine acts by preventing withdrawal symptoms and helping individuals proceed on the path to recovery.

When taken as the prescribed drug, it helps the patients to function intellectually and emotionally without any imbalance or impairment. It also helps the patients to get engaged with counseling and set goals in achieving a healthy lifestyle, both mentally and physically.

Buprenorphine is a partial opioid agonist.

This medicine saturates the opioid receptors in the brain. Individuals who may take opioids while on Suboxone will not experience any “high” feelings,  because there are fewer open brain receptors to bind with. When combined with other medicines, buprenorphine helps in reducing the withdrawal symptoms and has lower risk of overdose.

Benefits of Consuming Buprenorphine

The wide range of benefits of this drug help individuals to get rid of opioid addiction. As the dose is controlled, the recovery medication cannot be misused, and the treatment also does not interfere with the patient’s work and family schedule.

Buprenorphine is one of the main ingredients of Suboxone that help in controlling addiction. It is a partial agonist as well as it is a long-lasting opioid. This ingredient works for reducing cravings, helps you move from the cycles of cravings and withdrawal, and reduces the symptoms of withdrawal.

What Are The Trade Names Of Buprenorphine?

The trade names of this medicine are as follows-

  • Buprenorphine/Naloxone
  • Suboxone  – Formulation for Sublingual administration.
  • Sublocade – injectable
  • Butrans – Transdermal patch
  • Zubsolve – formulation for sublingual administration.

Can Buprenorphine Interact with Other Drugs in the Body?

Taking buprenorphine with other drugs can upset your central nervous system, which can be dangerous for the body. While taking this medication, avoid other Opioids, Benzodiazepines or alcohol. Taking these together will increase risk of respiratory depression.

At Alliance MD, our physicians provide addiction treatment and care for alcohol, opioid and heroin addiction, etc. The team provides treatment plans, including Sublocade, Vivitrol and Buprenorphine Treatment Indiana. The medication treatment is also accompanied by counseling and support to the patients. Opioid dependence is difficult to overcome, and the doctors at Alliance MD provide the best treatment to individuals to come back to their normal life again.

Find out a custom treatment plan for your loved ones now!

Exploring the Vital Aspects of Opioid Addiction Treatment the Ways to Recover

Posted on by AllianceMD

Several addictive substances negatively impact our lives, from illegal drugs like cocaine, and heroin to the common use of alcohol. But, amongst all, opioid drugs, both legal and illegal, are particularly of concern as they directly affect the functioning of your brain.

As per data from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, somewhere between 20-30% of people who have been prescribed opioid medications have actually misused the medications. Only 8-10% of them use opioid medications taken to treat chronic pain, but the rest take the medicines to support their drug dependency. Hence, it becomes very important to know why opioids are so addictive and what increases a person’s chance of developing an addiction. In order to combat this, Alliance MD’s opioid addiction treatment plan, helps people recover from addiction.

What Is the Link Between Opioids and Brain Functioning?

Research shows that opioids change the neurotransmitter balance of the brain. When opioids act on the opioid receptors in your brain. This then further triggers the endorphins naturally present in the brain which act as neurotransmitters. This increases the feelings of pleasure and reduces the perception of pain in your body.

The body quickly adapts to the powerful sense of ‘feeling good’ that opioid medications create in mind. Though this effect happens after the initial dose of opioids, later on, with neuroadaptation the opioids stop producing the same effect. Hence, opioid users start to seek more opioids to trigger endorphins in order to get the same feeling they initially experienced.

Difference Between Opioid Dependence and Addiction

Dependence is referred to something that people take for a long period. If anyone stops taking opioids, they will go through many withdrawal symptoms. These range from physical symptoms like muscle cramps to mental symptoms like anxiety.

A smaller number of people will develop addiction, wherein the person experiences serious negative effects, forcing them to seek more opioids. Consuming drugs will become a priority over jobs, relationships, health, and social life.

What Are the Effects of Opioid Doses?

There are legal and illegal ways for taking opioids. Commonly prescribed opioid drugs include Codeine, Oxycodone, Hydrocodone, Morphine, and Oxymorphone. These medicines are sold under Percocet, Vicodin, and OxyContin brands etc. The side effects of opioids include sleepiness, confusion, fatigue, nausea, and constipation. At higher doses opioids cause respiratory depression, shallow breathing, reduced heart rate, and loss of consciousness. In addition, individuals taking prescription opioids, once they become dependent, experience drug cravings, withdrawal symptoms, vomiting, insomnia, anxiety, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc.

Opioid and heroin addiction has become a significant cause of mortality for Americans and globally. Around 2 million people have opioid use disorder in the USA.

At Alliance MD, our team understands that each patient has his or her own set of health conditions and goals. Therefore, we customize the treatment as per individual requirement, severity of illness of the patient and find the most effective and efficient way to treat them.