Treatments for Drug abuse
Treatments for Drug abuse
The list of treatments mentioned in various sources
for Drug abuse
includes the following list.
Always seek professional medical advice about any treatment
or change in treatment plans.
- Drug treatment programs
- Supportive care and treatments
Drug abuse: Is the Diagnosis Correct?
The first step in getting correct treatment is
to get a correct diagnosis.
Differential diagnosis list for Drug abuse may include:
Hidden causes of Drug abuse may be incorrectly diagnosed:
Drug abuse: Research Doctors & Specialists
- Addiction Health Specialists:
- Mental Health Specialists:
- Poisoning / Toxicology Specialists:
- Teen Health Specialists:
- more specialists...»
Research all specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.
Hospital statistics for Drug abuse:
These medical statistics relate to hospitals, hospitalization and Drug abuse:
- 0.03% (3,917) of hospital consultant episodes were for mental and behavioural disorders due to use of opioids in England 2002-03 (Hospital Episode Statistics, Department of Health, England, 2002-03)
- 95% of hospital consultant episodes for mental and behavioural disorders due to use of opioids required hospital admission in England 2002-03 (Hospital Episode Statistics, Department of Health, England, 2002-03)
- 66% of hospital consultant episodes for mental and behavioural disorders due to use of opioids were for men in England 2002-03 (Hospital Episode Statistics, Department of Health, England, 2002-03)
- 34% of hospital consultant episodes for mental and behavioural disorders due to use of opioids were for women in England 2002-03 (Hospital Episode Statistics, Department of Health, England, 2002-03)
- 38% of hospital consultant episodes for mental and behavioural disorders due to use of opioids required emergency hospital admission in England 2002-03 (Hospital Episode Statistics, Department of Health, England, 2002-03)
- more hospital information...»
Hospitals & Medical Clinics: Drug abuse
Research quality ratings and patient incidents/safety measures
for hospitals and medical facilities in specialties related to Drug abuse:
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More general information, not necessarily in relation to Drug abuse,
on hospital and medical facility performance and surgical care quality:
Medical news summaries about treatments for Drug abuse:
The following medical news items
are relevant to treatment of Drug abuse:
Discussion of treatments for Drug abuse:
Drug Abuse and Treatment: NWHIC (Excerpt)
Treatment should include an evaluation of other serious health
problems- associated with drug abuse. For women, some of these problems
are:
-
Poor nutrition and below-average weight
-
Low self-esteem
-
Depression
-
Physical abuse
-
If pregnant, pre-term labor or early delivery
-
Serious medical and infectious diseases (e.g., increased
blood pressure and heart rate, STDs, HIV/AIDS).
(Source: excerpt from
Drug Abuse and Treatment: NWHIC)
Drug Abuse and Treatment: NWHIC (Excerpt)
Many drug-using women do not seek treatment because they are afraid,
they worry they won’t be able to keep or care for their children, they
fear reprisal from their spouses or boyfriends, and they fear punishment
from authorities in the community. Many women report that their drug-using
male sex partners initiated them into drug abuse and then sabotaged their
efforts to quit using drugs. (Source: excerpt from Drug Abuse and Treatment: NWHIC)
Drug Abuse and Treatment: NWHIC (Excerpt)
Research shows that women receive
the most benefit from drug treatment programs that provide comprehensive
services for meeting their basic needs, including access to:
-
Food, clothing, and shelter
-
Transportation
-
Job counseling and training
-
Legal assistance
-
Literacy training and educational opportunities
-
Parenting training
-
Family therapy
-
Medical care
-
Child care
-
Social services
-
Social support
-
Psychological assessment and mental health care
-
Assertiveness training
-
Family planning services.
Traditional male-oriented drug treatment programs may not be
appropriate for women because those programs may not provide these
services. Research also indicates that for women in particular, treatment
is more successful when they stay in regular touch with their treatment
provider. When a woman lapses during the treatment and recovery process;
it is important that they get the support of the community and
encouragement of those closest to them. After completing a drug treatment
program, women also need services to assist them in sustaining their
recovery and in rejoining the community. (Source: excerpt from Drug Abuse and Treatment: NWHIC)
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Book Excerpts: Treatment of Drug abuse
Treatments of Drug abuse: Online Medical Books
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for more information about the treatments of Drug abuse.
Alcohol-related disorder:
Treatment
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Total abstinence from alcohol is the only effective treatment. Supportive programs that offer detoxification, rehabilitation, and aftercare, including continued involvement in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), may produce good long-term results.
Acute intoxication is treated symptomatically by supporting respiration, preventing aspiration of vomitus, replacing fluids, administering I.V. glucose to prevent hypoglycemia, correcting hypothermia or acidosis, and initiating emergency treatment for trauma, infection, or GI bleeding.
Treatment of chronic alcohol abuse requires a varied approach that may include medications to deter alcohol use and treat effects of withdrawal; psychotherapy, consisting of behavior modification techniques, group therapy, and family therapy; and appropriate measures to relieve associated physical problems.
Aversion, or deterrent, therapy involves a daily oral dose of disulfiram to prevent compulsive drinking. This drug interferes with alcohol metabolism and allows toxic levels of acetaldehyde to accumulate in the patient’s blood, producing immediate and potentially fatal distress in the event he consumes alcohol up to 2 weeks after taking it. Disulfiram is contraindicated during pregnancy and in the patient with diabetes, heart disease, severe hepatic disease, or any disorder in which such a reaction could be especially dangerous. Another form of aversion therapy attempts to induce aversion by administering alcohol with an emetic.
The first drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of alcohol-related disorder since disulfiram is naltrexone, an opiate antagonist that effectively reduces the amount of intake, severity of craving, and relapse incidence. It’s believed to work by preventing the effects of increased endorphins produced as a product of increased alcohol intake.
For long-term success, the recovering individual must learn to fill the place alcohol once occupied in his life with something constructive. Therapy using disulfiram or naltrexone may only substitute one drug dependence for another, so it should be used prudently.
Benzodiazepine isn’t recommended during rehabilitation due to its addictive nature and the potential for reinforcing the substance abuse behavior.
ELDER TIP Because the older patient may be more sensitive to these drugs, withdrawal may take longer (weeks or months) and be more severe than in a younger adult.
Supportive counseling or individual, group, or family psychotherapy may help. Ongoing support groups are helpful. In AA, a self-help group with more than 1 million members worldwide, the alcoholic finds emotional support from others with similar problems. About 40% of AA’s members stay sober as long as 5 years, and 30% stay sober longer than 5 years.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Substance abuse and induced disorders:
Treatment
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
The patient with acute drug intoxication should receive symptomatic treatment based on the drug ingested. Measures include fluid replacement therapy and nutritional and vitamin supplements, if indicated; detoxification with the same drug or a pharmacologically similar drug (exceptions include cocaine, hallucinogens, and marijuana, which aren’t used for detoxification); sedatives to induce sleep; anticholinergics and antidiarrheal agents to relieve GI distress; antianxiety drugs for severe agitation, especially in cocaine abusers; and symptomatic treatment of complications. Depending on the dosage and time elapsed before admission, additional treatment may include gastric lavage, induced emesis, activated charcoal, forced diuresis and, possibly, hemoperfusion or hemodialysis.
Treatment of drug dependence commonly involves a triad of care: detoxification, short- and long-term rehabilitation, and aftercare; the latter means a lifetime of abstinence, usually aided by participation in Narcotics Anonymous (NA) or a similar self-help group.
Detoxification, the controlled and gradual withdrawal of an abused drug, is achieved through substituting a drug with a similar action. Such gradual replacement of the abused drug controls the effects of withdrawal, thereby reducing the patient’s discomfort and associated risks.
Depending on which drug the patient has abused, detoxification may be managed on an inpatient or outpatient basis. For example, withdrawal from depressants can produce hazardous adverse reactions, such as generalized tonic-clonic seizures, status epilepticus, and hypotension. The severity of these reactions determines whether the patient can be safely treated as an outpatient or if he requires hospitalization. Withdrawal from depressants usually requires detoxification because abrupt or poorly managed withdrawal from barbiturates can cause death.
Opioid withdrawal causes severe physical discomfort and can be life threatening. To minimize these effects, chronic opioid abusers commonly are detoxified with methadone.
To ease withdrawal from opioids, depressants, and other drugs, useful nonchemical measures may include psychotherapy, exercise, relaxation techniques, and nutritional support. Sedatives and tranquilizers may be administered temporarily to help the patient cope with insomnia, anxiety, and depression.
After withdrawal, the patient needs to participate in a rehabilitation program to prevent a recurrence. Rehabilitation programs are available for inpatients and outpatients; they usually last a month or longer and may include individual, group, and family psychotherapy. During and after rehabilitation, participation in a drug-oriented self-help group may be helpful. The largest such group is NA.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Alcoholism:
Treatment
(Handbook of Diseases)
Total abstinence from alcohol is the only effective treatment. Supportive programs that offer detoxification, rehabilitation, and aftercare, including continued involvement in Alcoholics Anonymous, may produce good long-term results.
Acute intoxication is treated symptomatically by supporting respiration, preventing aspiration of vomitus, replacing fluids, administering I.V. glucose to prevent hypoglycemia, correcting hypothermia or acidosis, and initiating emergency treatment for trauma, infection, or GI bleeding. Acute withdrawal is also treated with oral multiple B vitamins, including thiamine. Administer fluids as needed, but avoid overhydrating the patient.
CLINICAL TIP: The possibility of intoxication with other drugs should be considered and a blood or urine sample sent for toxicology as appropriate.
Treatment of chronic alcoholism involves counseling, education, and cognitive techniques; psychotherapy (consisting of behavior modification techniques, group therapy, and family therapy); and appropriate measures to relieve associated physical problems.
Aversion, or deterrent, therapy may involve a daily oral dose of disulfiram to prevent compulsive drinking. (See Avoiding the risks of disulfiram therapy.)
UNDER STUDY: The opioid-antagonist drug naltrexone has been shown to reduce the ability to return to drinking and shorten periods of relapse. Longer-term trials are needed.
Tranquilizers, particularly the benzodiazepines, are used to decrease withdrawal symptoms of the central nervous system and are administered routinely to decrease risk of seizures. These drugs are administered and decreased over 3 to 5 days. Status epilepticus should be treated aggressively; initial treatment with lorazepam I.V. is effective.
Supportive counseling or individual, group, or family psychotherapy may help. Ongoing support groups are also helpful.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
Drug abuse and dependence:
Treatment
(Handbook of Diseases)
The patient may first need treatment for drug intoxication, followed by long-term therapy to combat drug dependence.
Drug intoxication
The patient with acute drug intoxication should receive symptomatic treatment based on the drug ingested. Measures include fluid replacement therapy and nutritional and vitamin supplements, if indicated, and detoxification with the same drug or a pharmacologically similar drug. (Exceptions include cocaine, hallucinogens, and marijuana, which aren’t used for detoxification.)
Medications include sedatives to induce sleep; anticholinergics and anti-diarrheals to relieve GI distress; anti-anxiety drugs for severe agitation, especially in cocaine abusers; and symptomatic treatment of complications.
Depending on the dosage and time elapsed before admission, additional treatments may include gastric lavage, induced vomiting, activated charcoal, forced diuresis and, possibly, hemoperfusion or hemodialysis.
Drug dependence
Treatment of drug dependence commonly involves a triad of care: detoxification, short- and long-term rehabilitation, and aftercare. The latter means a lifetime of abstinence, usually aided by participation in Narcotics Anonymous or a similar self-help group.
Detoxification, the controlled and gradual withdrawal of an abused drug, is achieved through substitution of a drug with similar action, which is then gradually decreased. Such gradual replacement of the abused drug controls the effects of withdrawal, thereby reducing the patient’s discomfort and associated risks.
Depending on which drug the patient has abused, detoxification may be managed on an inpatient or outpatient basis. For example, withdrawal from CNS depressants can produce hazardous adverse reactions, such as generalized tonic-clonic seizures, status epilepticus, and hypotension.
The severity of these reactions determines whether the patient can be safely treated as an outpatient or requires hospitalization. Withdrawal from CNS depressants usually doesn’t require detoxification.
Opioid withdrawal causes severe physical discomfort and can even be life-threatening. To minimize these effects, chronic opioid abusers commonly are detoxified with methadone.
To ease withdrawal from opioids, depressants, and other drugs, useful nonchemical measures may include psychotherapy, exercise, relaxation techniques, and nutritional support. Sedatives and tranquilizers may be administered temporarily to help the patient cope with insomnia, anxiety, and depression.
After withdrawal, the patient needs to participate in a rehabilitation program to prevent a recurrence of drug abuse. Rehabilitation programs are available for both inpatients and outpatients; they usually last a month or longer and may include individual, group, and family psychotherapy. During and after rehabilitation, participation in a drug-oriented self-help group may be beneficial. The largest such group is Narcotics Anonymous.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
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