BACKGROUND After a long and controversial debate methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) was first introduced in Germany in 1987. The number of patients in MMT--first low because of strict admission criteria--increased considerably since the 1990s up to some 65,000 at the end of 2006. In Germany each general practitioner (GP), who has completed an additional training in addiction medicine, is all...

Abstract Background Opioid-related mortality is high and increasing in the Western world, interventions aimed at reducing opioid-related deaths represent an important area of study. In Skåne County, Sweden, a patient choice reform resulted increased access to opioid substitution treatment (OST). addition, gradual shift towards less restrictive terms for exclusion from OST has been implemented. ...


 Canada continues to experience an opioid crisis that has had a devastating impact on public health, highlighting the importance of management strategies for use disorder (OUD). Several agonist therapies (OATs) OUD are available in Canada, including recent approvals new brand name drugs and generic versions widely used OATs.
 Coverage criteria OATs comparable across drug plans Canada...

The way in which opioid addiction is managed in France is unique, as it is based on the prescription of buprenorphine by general practitioners and is dispensed by retail pharmacies. This policy has had a direct, positive impact on the number of deaths caused by heroin overdose, which was reduced by four-fifths between 1994 and 2002. In addition, certain associated comorbidities, such as infecti...

There are few pharmaceuticals superior to opiates for the treatment of pain. However, with concerns of addiction, withdrawal and questionable efficacy for all types of pain, these compounds are far from a magical panacea for pain-relief. As it is unlikely that other classes of compounds will supersede the opioids in the very near future, it is important to both optimize current opioid therapies...

The main purpose of this research was to determine the influence a therapeutic dose an opioid drug (methadone) on selected auditory functions in patients addicted opioids (recognition ICD-10; F11) and undergoing substitution therapy. Various hearing tests were used – pure tone audiometry, impedance otoacoustic emission measurement, speech noise test two sessions, before after methadone intake. ...