Fentanyl

The Faces Interactive website describes what it is like to be living with a substance abuse disorder. Also, it goes into detail about the differences between “substance intoxication,” “substance withdrawal,” and “substance dependence.” Substance intoxication takes place when one is under the influence of a substance and is experiencing mood and behavior altering affects. Substance withdrawal is when one is experiencing an uncomfortable occurrence that results when one is not taking a substance.…

most of these opiate addictions. Opiates originally were prescribed to relieve acute pain, but over time it created the addiction and abuse of the drug. Some of the most abused opiates are mainly prescription painkillers like oxycodone, hydrocodone, fentanyl, and heroin. To kind of describe why these drugs are so addictive, once an abuser takes the drug it enters through the bloodstream which created fake endorphins and dopamine creating a huge rush of happiness. After taking the drug for an…

I Don’t Know What It’s Like To Be Pain Free I interviewed Jerry, my father-in-law, a 50 year old, Caucasian male, in his home in Bonnerdale, Arkansas, on Sunday, November 6, 2016. He is in a committed relationship with his first wife, Connie, and has four children and two grandchildren. He is a homeowner, a Christian, and is self-employed. Jerry is comfortable answering my questions and he responds well to them, although he is clearly tired. Jerry was the electric maintenance supervisor for…

Imagine a child who experiences hundreds of epileptic seizures a day whose only wish is to go to school and learn like everyone else. A grandfather whose hands shake uncontrollably from Parkinson’s disease as he tries to play catch with his grandson in the backyard. Although Cannabis can treat these symptoms, it is currently listed as as Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substance Act, therefore, it is considered illegal. Cannabis should be reclassified as a Schedule II drug because it will…

As of late, there has been a drastic increase in deaths due to opioid overdoses, this crisis has spread across our country, and has caused President Trump to publicly come out and describe it as a ‘national health emergency’. Opioid overdoses have destroyed families, careers, and more importantly, it’s taken lives, but Seattle and King County have been taking action on this issue, by creating the nation’s first-ever safe injection site. This is reportedly inspired to be like Vancouver B.C.'s…

In recent years, diamorphine has killed more people than ever before. It’s street name? Heroin. Heroin is a highly euphoric, highly addictive type of drug extracted from the opium poppy plant. The opioid epidemic has reached increasingly large numbers and is very prevalent nowadays. People use opiates for many different reasons. They are considered analgesic drugs because the relieve pain. All opiates, including morphine, hydrocodone and oxycodone, require a prescription by a doctor and are used…

Enhanced recovery after surgery is an evidence based, multimodal pathway that is designed to decrease the stress on the patient through out their surgical journey. It focuses on improving the outcome of the patient after surgery, by taking additional steps to manage the patient before, during and after surgery. The longer a patient stays in the hospital post op, there is an increase risk to become susceptible to infections in this regard, the protocol serves as a guideline used to reduce the…

Introduction Propofol is a short-acting intravenous anesthetic drug with an excellent recovery profile having pharmacokinetic characteristics particularly suitable for continuous infusion [1,2]. Although propofol is commonly used for induction and maintenance of anesthesia in obese patients, little is known about its tolerated and effective dose in such patients [3]. Obese individuals have larger lean body and fat masses compared to non-obese of the same age, gender, and height. The altered…

A 29-year-old, 150 kg, 157 cm female presented for an incision and drainage of the right foot due to cellulitis. She had a past medical history of obstructive sleep apnea, asthma, super obesity, and acute kidney injury. She denied any smoking and illicit drug use history. She denied taking any home medications. Inpatient medications included piperacillin and tazobactam 3.375G every 6 hours, pantoprazole, heparin subcutaneous, and normal saline 100ml/hr. Significant lab values included BUN 44…

Memoir: Pill Head In the following memoir, Pill Head: The Secret Life of a Painkiller Addict by Joshua Lyon, a twenty-seven year old gay journalist with an out-of-control addiction to opioids guiding the reader through his journey as an addict. The story starts with Lyon discussing how his addiction started in high school with drinking, marijuana and other drugs sprinkled in here and there, he discovers pills at eighteen and beings a love affair. While writing this memoir he weaves in stories of…