Medicinal Therapies Available For Heroin Addiction Treatment In Oregon

Like other states in America, there are specific methods for heroin addiction treatment in Oregon too, which are different from the treatment methods for the other substances being abused in the state. There is an important reason for this. Heroin addiction treatment is not like the treatment for other addictive substances. Heroin is an opiate, and opiates are known to be highly addictive substances. Once an opiate enters the body of the person, it immediately targets specific areas in the brain that accelerates the release of a substance known as dopamine. Dopamine is a hormone that is responsible for the sensation of pleasure for the user. This is what constitutes the euphoric feeling that the person gets when he or she consumes heroin.

And this is what makes heroin addiction treatment in Oregon so difficult. It is not easy to remove a substance that is so highly addictive from the constitution of the person, let alone from their mind. Heroin houses itself quite obstinately in the body for the simple reason that it stimulates the brain. After a point of time, the person ceases to feel any pleasure without heroin. This is when the person will become totally dependent on the substance.

As the person's usage of heroin increases, the brain will slowly lose the potential of getting the pleasure connected with it. The person will then begin increasing the amount of heroin that he or she puts into the body. This makes the person a complete addict of the substance and also increases the chance of the person having an overdose on it. The reason for the frequent deaths due to heroin overdose in Oregon is because of this tendency of heroin users.

Let us now speak about the kinds of medications that are used for heroin addiction treatment in Oregon. The strong nature of heroin addiction warrants a strong medication to help people come out of the tendency.

The principle of heroin addiction treatment in Oregon is to introduce another substance into the person's body that can take the place of heroin. The substance chosen is a maintenance medication, which will keep the urge for heroin at bay as long as the person keeps on the medication. Naturally, the substance chosen for this purpose should have a similar kind of effect on the central nervous system as heroin has, because this is what will really make the person come out of the temptation for using heroin. The substance chosen needs to be an opiate.

Since thirty years, the opiate of choice for heroin addiction treatment in Oregon was methadone. This substance acts on the same areas of the brain as heroin does. Hence, as long as the person is provided with a regular dosage of methadone, he or she will not feel the urge for heroin as strongly. The person will be able to come out of the heroin dependency completely too, if the methadone dosage is kept up on a carefully administered scale. However, this takes a lot of time and care.

The care is needed because methadone is an opiate too. Being that, it is also addictive. It is not as addictive as heroin is, but it can be dangerous if not carefully and professionally administered. The patient can develop an affinity for methadone and start abusing it if care is not taken. This is one of the most serious limitations of the use of methadone in heroin addiction treatment in Oregon, one that makes it totally unfit for outpatient use. Another factor that consolidates this is that methadone can react drastically with some prescription drugs that the person might be on.

This is the reason why there arose a need for another form of treatment and this need was answered by buprenorphine. Introduced about ten years ago, its use for heroin addiction treatment in Oregon has spiraled upwards now with the FDA approval of Subutex and Suboxone, both containing buprenorphine, for heroin treatment. Subutex is a purer form of buprenorphine while Suboxone is a blend of buprenorphine with another substance known as naloxone.

Buprenorphine is also an opiate, but the fact that goes towards its advantage is that it is not as habit forming as methadone is. It does not have any known adverse reactions with other drugs. This makes it good for outpatient treatment too. The addition of naloxone in Suboxone is a well-planned step because naloxone can create an aversion for buprenorphine in the person. Hence, even the remotest possibility of a person getting addicted to buprenorphine is removed.

These are the medicinal therapies that are used for heroin addiction treatment in Oregon. If you have to plan a treatment for someone in the state, make sure to research these options quite well and then take your decision.

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