Can eastern wisdom resolve western epidemics? Traditional Chinese medicine therapies and the opioid crisis.
The widespread use of opioids to treat chronic pain led to a nation-wide crisis in the United States. Tens of thousands of deaths annually occur mainly due to respiratory depression, the most dangerous side effect of opioids. Non-opioid drugs and non-pharmacological treatments without addictive potential are urgently required. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is based on a completely different medical theory than academic Western medicine. The scientific basis of acupuncture and herbal treatments as main TCM practices has been considerably improved during the past two decades, and large meta-analyses with thousands of patients provide evidence for their efficacy. Furthermore, opinion lead…
Role of Levo-tetrahydropalmatine and its metabolites for management of chronic pain and opioid use disorders.
Abstract Background Opioids have been prescribed to reduce suffering from pain and to enhance quality of life. Due to the addictive potential and the lack of other effective alternatives to treat severe acute and chronic pains, opioids remain a serious public health issue. While, opioids directly influence the drug-seeking behavior, tolerance and withdrawal processes, through neuroadaptation, the brain's endogenous opioid system also adapts in the presence of chronic pain and could contribute to the difficulty of treatment. Despite the seemingly obvious interaction between the presence of pain and opioid-abuse, little is known about the underlying mechanisms in the brain. Purpose To review …
Health(care) in the Crisis: Reflections in Science and Society on Opioid Addiction
Opioid abuse and misuse have led to an epidemic which is currently spreading worldwide. Since the number of opioid overdoses is still increasing, it is becoming obvious that current rather unsystematic approaches to tackle this health problem are not effective. This review suggests that fighting the opioid epidemic requires a structured public health approach. Therefore, it is important to consider not only scientific and biomedical perspectives, but societal implications and the lived experience of groups at risk as well. Hence, this review evaluates the risk factors associated with opioid overdoses and investigates the rates of chronic opioid misuse, particularly in the context of chronic…