background substance abuse or drug addiction is one of the most important health issues in every society, which can lead to physical and mental problems. objectives this study aimed to compare the efficacy of tramadol plus gabapentin versus methadone use in the treatment of opiate withdrawal. patients and methods consenting male subjects who fulfilled the dsm-4 criteria for opiate dependence sy...

Despite several studies suggesting the therapeutic use of 5-hydroxytryptamine receptors type 2A (5-HT2A ) agonists in the treatment of substance use disorders, the neurobiological basis accounting for such effects are still unknown. It has been observed that chronic exposure to drugs of abuse produces molecular and cellular adaptations in ventral tegmental area (VTA) neurons, mediated by brain-...

Treatments for physical dependence and associated withdrawal symptoms following the abrupt discontinuation of prescription drugs (such as opioids and benzodiazepines), nicotine, alcohol, and cannabinoids are available, but there is still a need for new and more effective therapies. This review examines evidence supporting the potential use of pregabalin, an α2δ voltage-gated calcium channel sub...

BACKGROUND The DSM-III-R removed tolerance and withdrawal as required elements for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence. Although this practice was continued in DSM-IV, the more recent manual asked clinicians to note whether physiological aspects of withdrawal (tolerance and withdrawal) had ever been experienced. Few studies have determined the prognostic meaning of a history of a physiological co...

People: 668 people (aged 18–45 years) with a diagnosed personality disorder (Diagnostic Interview for DSM-IV Personality Disorders), or major depressive disorder (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders-patient version). Included personality disorders were: schizotypal, borderline, avoidant, and obsessive-compulsive. Exclusions: acute substance intoxication or withdrawal; acti...

Naltrexone is a long acting opioid antagonist that is used in rehabilitation programmes to maintain heroin abstinence. It is a relatively new drug prescribed by specialists in substance misuse. Its actions and effects may not be familiar to many accident and emergency doctors or even to the people who take it. A case report is described where accidental ingestion of naltrexone results in a medi...

For diagnosis of patients with comorbid psychotic symptoms and substance use disorders (SUDs), Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, makes clear distinctions between independent psychotic disorders (eg, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia) and substance-induced syndromes (eg, delirium, dementias). Most substance-induced psychotic symptoms are considered to be short ...

Alcohol withdrawal is a clinical state characterized by symptoms such as tremors, tachycardia, sweating, nausea and vomiting, headache, malaise, insomnia, grand mal convulsions amongst others. Patients typically present acutely with history of recent cessation or reduction heavy alcohol use after long period repeated, persistent use. It may feature perceptual disturbances illusions hallucinatio...

In the previous paper (Peper et al., 1987: J. theor. Biol. 127, 413), a model of drug tolerance was developed based on the assumption that the decrease of drug effect after repeated administration of a drug is caused by the involved regulations in the organism adapting themselves to the presence of the drug. In the present paper, the behaviour of the model is studied with respect to the dose-re...