《2010-美国国立药物滥用研究中心介绍海洛因》由会员分享，可在线阅读，更多相关《2010-美国国立药物滥用研究中心介绍海洛因（5页珍藏版）》请在金锄头文库上搜索。
1、Updated March 2010Page 1 of 5 Heroin is an opiate drug that is synthesized from morphine, a naturally occurring substance extracted from the seed pod of the Asian opium poppy plant. Heroin usually appears as a white or brown powder or as a black sticky substance, known as “black tar heroin.” How Is
2、Heroin Abused? Heroin can be injected, snorted/sniffed, or smokedroutes of administration that rapidly deliver the drug to the brain. Injecting is the use of a needle to administer the drug directly into the bloodstream. Snorting is the process of inhaling heroin powder through the nose, where it is
3、 absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues. Smoking involves inhaling heroin smoke into the lungs. All three methods of administering heroin can lead to addiction and other severe health problems. How Does Heroin Affect the Brain? Heroin enters the brain, where it is converted to morph
4、ine and binds to receptors known as opioid receptors. These receptors are located in many areas of the brain (and in the body), especially those involved in the perception of pain and in reward. Opioid receptors are also located in the brain stemimportant for automatic processes critical for life, s
5、uch as breathing (respiration), blood pressure, and arousal. Heroin overdoses frequently involve a suppression of respiration. After an intravenous injection of heroin, users report feeling a surge of euphoria (“rush”) accompanied by dry mouth, a warm flushing of the skin, heaviness of the extremiti
6、es, and clouded mental functioning. Following this initial euphoria, the user goes “on the nod,” an alternately wakeful and drowsy state. Users who do not inject the drug may not experience the initial rush, but other effects are the same. With regular heroin use, tolerance develops, in which the us
7、ers physiological (and psychological) response to the drug decreases, and more heroin is needed to achieve the same intensity of effect. Heroin users are at high risk for addictionit is estimated that about 23 percent of individuals who use heroin become dependent on it. What Other Adverse Effects D
8、oes Heroin Have on Health? Heroin abuse is associated with serious health conditions, including fatal overdose, spontaneous abortion, andparticularly Heroin Updated March 2010Page 2 of 5 in users who inject the druginfectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS and hepatitis. Chronic users may develop coll
9、apsed veins, infection of the heart lining and valves, abscesses, and liver or kidney disease. Pulmonary complications, including various types of pneumonia, may result from the poor health of the abuser as well as from heroins depressing effects on respiration. In addition to the effects of the dru
10、g itself, street heroin often contains toxic contaminants or additives that can clog blood vessels leading to the lungs, liver, kidneys, or brain, causing permanent damage to vital organs. Chronic use of heroin leads to physical dependence, a state in which the body has adapted to the presence of th
11、e drug. If a dependent user reduces or stops use of the drug abruptly, he or she may experience severe symptoms of withdrawal. These symptomswhich can begin as early as a few hours after the last drug administrationcan include restlessness, muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea and vomiting, cold
12、 flashes with goose bumps (“cold turkey”), and kicking movements (“kicking the habit”). Users also experience severe craving for the drug during withdrawal, which can precipitate continued abuse and/or relapse. Major withdrawal symptoms peak between 48 and 72 hours after the last dose of the drug an
13、d typically subside after about 1 week. Some individuals, however, may show persistent withdrawal symptoms for months. Although heroin withdrawal is considered less dangerous than alcohol or barbiturate withdrawal, sudden withdrawal by heavily dependent users who are in poor health is occasionally f
14、atal. In addition, heroin craving can persist years after drug cessation, particularly upon exposure to triggers such as stress or people, places, and things associated with drug use. Heroin abuse during pregnancy, together with related factors like poor nutrition and inadequate prenatal care, has b
15、een associated with adverse consequences including low birthweight, an important risk factor for later developmental delay. If the mother is regularly abusing the drug, the infant may be born physically dependent on heroin and could suffer from serious medical complications requiring hospitalization
16、. What Treatment Options Exist? A range of treatments exist for heroin addiction, including medications and behavioral therapies. Science has taught us that when medication treatment is combined with other supportive services, patients are often able to stop using heroin (or other opiates) and return to stable and productive lives. Updated March 2010Page 3 of 5 Treatment usually begins with medically assisted detoxification to help patients withdraw from the drug safely. Medications suc
