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Analysis of opium use by students of medical sciences.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To investigate the prevalence of opium use in university students. BACKGROUND: University health professionals and authorities are very concerned about substance use among university students. DESIGN: A survey with a representative sample of 2519 (1126 men and 1393 women) university students and opium use disorders assessed by means of DSM-IV criteria (Diagnostic Statistical Manual-IV Axis I during the year 2003). FINDINGS: Mean age of the sample was 23.8 year and SD was 3.9. Of the students, 110 (4.4%) admitted using of opium once or more during their lives (9.1% of men and 0.6% of women; P < 0.01). Fifty (2%) were occasional opium user (4.2% of men and 0.2% of women; P < 0.01). Nineteen (0.8%) were current opium user (1.4% of men and 0.2% of women; P = 0.001). Mean age of opium users was higher than the remainder. Opium use was significantly related to gender (P = 0.001), and life stress (P = 0.04). CONCLUSION: These findings can be considered for preventive and therapeutic programmes, because early intervention during the formative university years may present an opportunity to reduce the risk of long-term problems, to decrease social and individual harm and also to promote public health of society. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: These findings can be considered in clinical practice for detection and treatment of opioid abuse.

Adult↗

Natural opium as one of the possibilities for drug abusers.

Natural opium is a popular seasonal alternation for substance dependent people. Its processing, way of using, experience and change of habits was the aim of our study carried out via anonymous questionnaire and directed interview. 47 questionnaires were obtained. According to our results natural opium has been abused by people 19-42 years old, more than a half of them were male. Basic drug were pervitin in 57 %, marihuana in 33 %, a considerable part (30 %) was natural opium. Each grower produced approximately 35 g of raw opium in one season. The most frequent way of application was smoking, injecting and "opium tea" drinking. Almost a half of the clients (40 %) felt attenuation after application; relaxation, hallucination and central stimulation admitted 25 % of respondents. Health troubles had majority of the users. Combinations of natural opium with other drugs (alcohol, marihuana, pervitin) declared 45 % respondents, the effects of the combinations admitted one third of users. The examination for viral hepatitis confirmed more than a half of the clients; the major part of users from Olomouc, but only 25 % of users from Prostejov were tested for HIV. Opium consumption influenced habits of personal hygiene of more than a half of the users (57 %). Routine servicing of the spot of the needle insertion practiced a half of the responders. Majority of the abusers (79 %) obtained and closed out paraphernalia throw to the "harm reduction" program.

Adult↗

[Influence of fertilizers on yield and yield components of opium from Papaver somniferum Linn].

The effect of fertilizer on the yield and yield components of opium from Papaver somniferum L.cv.Ikkanshu were investigated from 1993 to 1995. The weight of opium per one capsule was tendency to increase in the order of peat moss > pulverized charcoal > compound fertilizer, but the differences among the results were not significant. Furthermore, no difference in the capsule weight per 100 m2 and the yields of opium and alkaloids per 100 m2 were detected. The significant difference was only observed when the data were compared among the weights and yields of different years. The difference among the yield of opium was mainly due to the weight of opium per one capsule. The weight of opium per one capsule showed a high correlation with capsule husk weight. The alkaloids contents in opium obtained with a different fertilizer application showed no difference. Morphine content at the first lancing was about 11%, and the value decreased with the order of lancing. On the contrary, the codeine and the thebaine content did not change during lancing and the value were 6-7% and 3%, respectively. The papaverine and the noscapine content decreased in the order of lancing.

Codeine↗

Opium administration to infants in Peshawar region of Pakistan.

Use of opium for sedating infants in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan causes a grave public health problem. Among the infants hospitalized for opium overdosage, 22 were studied in detail, and their major clinical picture is presented in this paper. The effect of opium use on the nutritional status of these infants, or the relation of infant opium use to addiction in adult life, have not been assessed. It is, however, pointed out that opium overdosage of infants contributed to infant mortality. Despite emergency treatment, the lethality rate of opium overdosed infants was 40 per cent. It is emphasized that a preventive programme should be undertaken to educate parents who are ignorant of the dangers of opium administration to infants.

Child, Preschool↗

Levels of arsenic in Indian opium eaters.

Intake of opium is very common in India. The contraband material is generally contaminated with arsenic. Most often opium eaters present with neuropathy and hepatomegaly. Arsenic was estimated in serum, urine, nails and hair of opium eaters with and without neuropathy. Arsenic was also estimated in various opium samples. Arsenic was significantly higher in serum, urine, nails and hair of opium addicts when compared to controls. The opium samples analysed showed varyingly high amounts of arsenic.

Adult↗

The roles of latex and the vascular bundle in morphine biosynthesis in the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum.

The opium poppy, Papaver somniferum, is one of mankind's oldest medicinal plants. Opium poppy today is the commercial source of the narcotic analgesics morphine and codeine. Along with these two morphinans, opium poppy produces approximately eighty alkaloids belonging to various tetrahydrobenzylisoquinoline-derived classes. It has been known for over a century that morphinan alkaloids accumulate in the latex of opium poppy. With identification of many of the enzymes of alkaloid biosynthesis in this plant, biochemical data suggested involvement of multiple cell types in alkaloid biosynthesis in poppy. Herein the immunolocalization of five enzymes of alkaloid formation in opium poppy is reported: (R,S)-3'-hydroxy-N-methylcoclaurine 4'-O-methyltransferase central to the biosynthesis of tetrahydroisoquinoline-derived alkaloids, the berberine bridge enzyme of the sanguinarine pathway, (R,S)-reticuline 7-O-methyltransferase specific to laudanosine formation, and salutaridinol 7-O-acetyltransferase and codeinone reductase, which lead to morphine. In capsule and stem, both O-methyltransferases and the O-acetyltransferase are found predominantly in parenchyma cells within the vascular bundle, and codeinone reductase is localized to laticifers, the site of morphinan alkaloid accumulation. In developing root tip, both O-methyltransferases and the O-acetyltransferase are found in the pericycle of the stele, and the berberine bridge enzyme is localized to parenchyma cells of the root cortex. Laticifers are not found in developing root tip, and, likewise, codeinone reductase was not detected. These results provide cell-specific localization that gives a coherent picture of the spatial distribution of alkaloid biosynthesis in opium poppy.

Alkaloids↗

Association between opium abuse and comorbidity in diabetic men.

The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of opium abuse in diabetic men and to investigate its association with comorbidity. The study population was comprised of 312 consecutive diabetic men aged 20 years or older residing in the study area in 2005. The prevalence of self-reported opium abuse was 11.2%. Opium use was associated with low socioeconomic status, smoking, tea consumption, and a higher prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and severe depression. The prevalence of severe depression was 22.8% among 35 men who used opium and 13.4% among 277 who did not use it. The prevalence of moderate or severe ED was 85.7% among opium users and 66.1% among non-users. The risk of ED was two times (95% CI 1.0-7.4) higher in opium users compared with nonusers.

Adult↗

Mutagens produced by the pyrolysis of opium and its alkaloids as possible risk factors in cancer of the bladder and oesophagus.

Samples of opium pipe scrapings (opium dross, called sukhteh locally), but not of crude opium, collected in an area with a high incidence of oesophageal cancer in north-east Iran, were shown to contain pro-mutagens, producing mostly frameshift mutations in Salmonella typhimurium strains TA1538 and TA98 after metabolic activation. Pyrolysis of opium and of its major alkaloid, morphine, yielded smoke condensates with mutagenic activities 10 and 100 times higher, respectively, than that of the sukhteh samples tested. Heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and primary aromatic amines present at different concentrations in these three pyrolysates are considered to be the major active principles. Opium addiction has been implicated as a risk factor in bladder cancer in humans and the ingestion of opium pyrolysates, in conjunction with dietary deficiencies, may be related to the high incidence of oesophageal cancer in north-east Iran, although causality has not been established.

Alkaloids↗

Opium and heroin addicts in Laos. I. A comparative study.

Students of narcotic addiction have believed that heroin addiction is more debilitating than the "traditional" opium addiction. Access to both opium and heroin addicts in a Laotian treatment facility provided an opportunity to test this hypothesis. All subjects were volunteer narcotic addicts seeking treatment at an inpatient detoxification facility over a 12-month period. The research format consisted of five demographic characteristics, four aspects of past narcotic usage, and three aspects of current narcotic usage. Fifty-one heroin addicts were compared to 438 opium addicts. Many of the demographic differences in the two groups reflected the urban residence of most heroin addicts and the mixed urban-rural residence of opium addicts. Heroin addicts had more frequent daily doses of drug, spent considerably more money for their drug, and required higher initial methadone doses for detoxification. It also appeared that heroin addicts might have "deteriorated" faster and thus sought treatment earlier than opium addicts. Since the heroin and opium addicts in this study differed significantly on most demographic characteristics, it was difficult to know whether these observed differences were due to drug factors or demographic factors. Thus, a study of pairs matched for age, sex, and ethnicity was subsequently undertaken to test the hypotheses generated by this study.

Adolescent↗

Chasing the dragon: the cultural metamorphosis of opium in the United States, 1825-1935.

Many things to many people, opium has played a role in the emergence of several power bases in the United States. In turn, these bases of power have shaped what opium is for the rest of us. Allopathic medicine brought opium and its derivatives under its control around the turn of the century, promulgating "addiction theory" and addiction clinics as part of its rise to preeminence among rival forms of medicine. Opium also played a role in the U.S.'s international economic and imperialistic ascendance. When politicians began to deploy a new discourse on opium early in this century, they were able to appropriate medical rhetoric. As the politics of opium heated up, some doctors were able to exploit the emerging politically inspired discourse to generate a subtly different medical knowledge of opiates and addiction while establishing a new subdiscipline with the political support of lawmakers and state institutions.

Anthropology, Cultural↗

Quantitative evaluation of 28 mineral elements by inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry and its application in source identification of Indian opium.

An analytical method based on inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry (ICP/MS) was developed for the determination of 28 mineral elements (Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Sr, Cd, Ag, Ba, Pb, Bi Y, La, Ce, Nd, Pr, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, and Lu) in Indian opium samples. The detection limits were found to be in the range of 0.0008-0.45 ng/mL. The recoveries of spiked samples for each element were found to be in the range of 83-106%, with a precision of less than 9%. A total of 124 opium samples from India were analyzed for the distribution pattern of the 28 mineral elements. Quantitative elemental data were subjected to chemometric analysis in order to determine an optimal classifier to evaluate the source of Indian opium. The study indicated that mineral elements might not be the suitable discriminators for the discrimination of licit opium-growing divisions of India. However, the methodology developed and the analytical data on elemental profile may find important forensic application in discriminating Indian opium with that of licit and illicit opium originating from different geographical regions of world.

Drug Contamination↗

Opium use in two communities of Pakistan ---a preliminary comparison of rural and urban patterns.

Interviews were conducted to clarify drug use patterns and characteristics of opium users in two communities. Because of the small number of subjects selected from only two communities, the results are not representative of the country as a whole. Nevertheless, in the city of Rawalpindi 90 users were studied and found to have a mean daily opium consumption of 0.9 grams at a cost of Rs. 1.00 ($US 0.10). Opium was taken by mouth once or twice daily. They were solitary users who first used opium as adults, most often for self-treatment of health disorders. The majority were employed males with no history of criminality. In the rural opium-producing village, 28 users were interviewed. They smoked opium three or four times a day in a social setting and reported a mean daily consumption of 11 grams. They were more likely to use the drug for its social and pleasure effects and to have addicts as close friends. The high dose was associated with adverse effects on work performance and with more severe withdrawal symptoms. The findings suggest different intervention strategies for the two populations.

Adult↗

Opium: a potential urinary bladder carcinogen in man.

Evidence is presented that opium addition is a risk factor for cancer of the bladder. A case-control study of 99 bladder cancer patients admitted to Nemazee Hospital in Shiraz, Iran was evaluated. Cancer patients and controls, matched by age and sex, were analyzed as to their opium and/or cigarette smoking habits. A high correlation between opium addiction and bladder cancer has been observed. This evidence significantly exceeded the one observed in relation to cigarette smoking only. The sex ratio for this cancer site, from hospitalized cases in Southern Iran, is estimated to be about nine male cases per one female case. This high male to female ratio was attributed to the greater addiction of males to opium. It was concluded that opium and, more likely, its pyrolysis derived fractions may represent potential bladder carcinogens in man.

Adult↗

Application of capillary zone electrophoresis in the separation and determination of the principal gum opium alkaloids.

We describe the use of capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) for the qualitative and quantitative determination of major alkaloids (i.e., thebaine, codeine, morphine, papavarine and narcotine) in gum opium involving the analysis of alkaloids without derivatization or purification. Three extractions with 2.5% w/v aqueous acetic acid quantitatively extracted major alkaloids. The separation was carried out by CZE using a 7:3 mixture of methanol and sodium acetate (100 mM, pH 3.1) at a potential of 15 kV, with UV detection at 224 nm. Spiking of pure reference alkaloid standards in the opium extract was used for peak identification. The influences of buffer composition, pH and voltage on the separation of alkaloids were studied. The detection limit of each alkaloid dissolved in methanol was found to be 850 ng/mL (morphine), 450 ng/mL (thebaine), 500 ng/mL (codeine), 550 ng/mL (papaverine), and 500 ng/mL (narcotine) at an injection pressure of 300 mbar (injection volume, 4 nL) with a signal-to-noise ratio of 3:1. The external standard method was used for the quantification of alkaloids. The calibration plot was based on linear regression analysis. The relative standard deviation (RSD) for peak area and migration time was in the range of 1.03-3.56% and 0.34-0.69%, respectively. Percentage compositions (g%) of opium alkaloids in five gum opium samples were found to be in the range of 14.45-15.95 (morphine), 2.0-3.45 (codeine), 1.32-2.73 (thebaine), 0.92-2.37 (papavarine), and 3.85-5.77 (narcotine). The method developed is suitable for the routine analysis of major gum opium alkaloids in samples of forensic importance.

Acetic Acid↗

Oesophageal cancer studies in the Caspian littoral of Iran: some residual results, including opium use as a risk factor.

A study was conducted in northern Iran in areas of very high, high and moderately low incidence of oesophageal cancer. Morphine metabolites in urine as an indicator of opium use, and a variety of nutritional and biochemical measures, including salivary antipyrine half-life, were determined in households with a case of oesophageal cancer and in control households. Results on 1,590 individuals showed that the prevalence of appreciable levels (greater than or equal to 1 microgram/ml) of urinary morphine metabolites was much higher in areas of high and very high incidence of oesophageal cancer than in low-incidence areas, particularly for those under age 50 years in both sexes, where a 6-fold difference was seen. Members of households with a case of oesophageal cancer had a higher prevalence of positive urinary morphine metabolite findings than members of control households from the same village. Salivary anti-pyrine half-life (AP-T1/2), as a measure of hepatic drug metabolizing capacity, was estimated in 120 subjects. No relationship was seen with use of opium, region of residence, case-control status of household, age or sex. Experimental studies have meanwhile identified mutagenic substances with carcinogenic potential in opium pipe scrapings, used widely in the study region, opium pyrolysates and morphine pyrolysates. Our data give additional support to the hypothesis that opium use, in the form of its pyrolysates, is one of the factors involved in the aetiology of oesophageal cancer in the region.

Adolescent↗

Acute opiate overdose in Tehran: the forgotten role of opium.

INTRODUCTION: The global epidemic of opiate use continues to spread and is an increasing burden especially in developing countries. Acute opiate overdose (AOO) is one of the most dramatic complications of drug abuse. The purpose of this study is to examine the epidemiology of acute opiate overdose in a poisoning center in Tehran. METHODS: In this cross-sectional survey, patients who attended the emergency room of Loghman-Hakim hospital - the only poisoning center in Tehran - and diagnosed with acute opiate overdose over a six month period were included. RESULTS: Overdose was more common among men (91.2%). The mean and standard deviation of age was 36.9+/-15. The most frequent opiate agent was opium (56.5%) followed by heroin. Opium was most commonly used by regular users, as a single agent and through ingestion. Benzodiazepines, antidepressants and alcohol were the most common agents consumed accompanied with opiates. The mortality rate was 8.8% which was not significantly different between cases of heroin and opium overdose. CONCLUSION: Opium was the major cause of overdose in our study. This result suggests that opium is not a harmless form of addiction although it is regarded as a thing of the past in many countries.

Acute Disease↗

Use of dynamically coated capillaries with added cyclodextrins for the analysis of opium using capillary electrophoresis.

A rapid, precise, accurate, and robust method using capillary electrophoresis (CE) with dynamically coated capillaries for the analysis of the major opium alkaloids in opium is presented. Dynamic coating of the capillary surface is accomplished using a commercially available reagent kit (polycation coating followed by polyanion coating). The addition of dual cyclodextrins (hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin and dimethyl-beta-cyclodextrin) to the run buffer imparts excellent selectivity for the opium alkaloids. For the determination of morphine, papaverine, codeine, noscapine and thebaine in opium gum and opium latex samples (using tetracaine as an internal standard) good agreement with values obtained by gradient high-performance liquid chromatography is obtained. Compared to the latter technique, CE affords better resolution with significantly faster analysis time (12 min versus 29 min). Dynamically coated capillaries, which give rise to a relatively high and robust electroosmotic flow (EOF) at the background electrolyte pH of 2.5, allow for rapid analysis and excellent migration time and peak area precision (RSDs < or = 0.12% and < or = 1.2%, respectively). Reproducible separations (relative migration times) for over 500 samples have been obtained on a single capillary. The nature of the injection solvent, the injection time and the contents of the waste vials have a profound effect on the pressure injection precision of the relatively hydrophobic solutes. The CE conditions reported in this study are also applicable to the analysis of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) exhibits.

Cyclodextrins↗

Opium in 20th-century Britain: pharmacists, regulation and the people.

AIMS: To indicate how the system of pharmaceutical regulation of the sale and use of opium in Great Britain continued throughout the first half of the 20th century. DESIGN: An oral history investigation of community pharmacy in Great Britain (n = 50), together with an analysis of standard pharmaceutical texts. SETTING: Community pharmacies in Great Britain during the 20th century. PARTICIPANTS: Retired community pharmacists with experience of the sale and use of opium during the period. MEASUREMENTS: Oral testimony of retired community pharmacists about the use and sale of opium, and quantitative analysis of numbers of official preparations of opium available during the period. FINDINGS: The popular use of opium continued well after the First World War, and its use as an ingredient of prescribed medicines continued well beyond the introduction of the National Health Service in 1948. CONCLUSIONS: Although the role of pharmacy in the regulation of opiates and other drugs was displaced by medicine following the passage of dangerous drugs legislation in the 1920s, pharmacists continued to play an important part in this regulation, exercising considerable discretion in the process.

Drug and Narcotic Control↗