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METHADONE OPIODS

METHADONE MAY BE LESS ADDICTIVE THAN OTHER OPIOIDS, Restless Legs Syndrome Foundat

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April 8, 2019
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By Kris Schanilec
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Scientists at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and their collaborators report that methadone may produce less Upcoming Events
euphoria than other opioids, suggesting it may hold less risk for abuse or misuse.
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In a study led by Sergi Ferré, MD, PhD, and Annabelle Belcher, PhD, published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers Twitter
conducted experiments using cells in culture, as well as an animal model, to assess the effects of different opioids on the brain.
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They found that methadone was much less potent than morphine and fentanyl in activating receptors that drive feelings of
euphoria.

In the experiments, the scientists examined the response of opioid receptors in cells in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the
brain. The VTA is a key area involved in the brain’s “reward circuit.” The researchers found that opioid receptors located in the
POPULAR POSTS
VTA link with receptors for another neurotransmitter called galanin to form complexes; and that these complexes are less
responsive to methadone than to the other opioids.

Depression and RLS

The researchers also looked at patient data from the RLS Opioid Registry and from a clinical trial for opioid use disorder (opioid
October 27, 2018
addiction). In both studies, significantly fewer patients said they experienced a “high” from taking methadone compared with
and Treatment
the other opioids – confirming results of the lab experiments.
MD This is an excerpt f
fall 2018 edition of NightWalkers,
“Our work provides very important support for the use of methadone in RLS. These results provide a substantial basis for
arguments for its continued availability and use as an opioid treatment with little addictive potential,” says Dr. Ferré, who is a Triggers That May Wo
member of the RLS Foundation Scientific and Medical Advisory Board. October 4, 2018
Triggers A trigger is a s
“The results also open a new path to address the discovery of opioids with lower risk of addiction, which already include that causes a worsenin
methadone. Our ongoing studies will identify the mechanism by which methadone does not activate the opioid-galanin RLS. Certain foods, beverages, medic
:
 receptor complexes, which light up the reward circuitry, to use this as the basis for future drug development. This is the Holy
Eating with RLS
Grail in the search for effective opioids for the treatment of pain and RLS – we want to emulate that,” Dr. Ferré says.
April 23, 2020
Difference
Opioid therapy is used to treat RLS when all other options have failed. At low total daily doses, opioids are effective for
significant effect on th
controlling RLS symptoms in most patients. Methadone and oxycontin are specifically used for RLS because they are longer- symptoms of many chronic condition
acting, so a single dose can control symptoms across a span of many hours. RLS is no ex...

The NIDA findings present a new way for clinicians to distinguish among opioids, according to co-author John Winkelman, MD, Medical Marijuana and
PhD. “This study suggests that methadone may be distinctive in that it doesn’t activate the euphoric, or rewarding, centers in Medical Marijuana and
the brain, and therefore lessens the risk of misuse or abuse. From this perspective, methadone in low doses is not as worrisome Jacquelyn Bainbridge,
as other opioids. However, it is still an opioid and needs to be used only in select patients and carefully in those individuals,” says and Mark Buchfuhrer,

Dr. Winkelman. FRCP(C), FCCP, FAASM

recreational u...

RLS patients who may feel stigmatized for taking methadone can find reassurance in these new findings, according to RLS
Foundation Executive Director Karla Dzienkowski, “This gives the RLS patient community validation for this treatment, and Complementary Corne
Magnesium
hope for the future.”
Managing Your Magne

In this video by NIDA, Dr. Ferre and Dr. Belcher discuss what they have learned about methadone, a drug used to manage opioid Norma G. Cuellar, PhD
FAAN This is an excerpt from the spr
addiction that does not have euphoric effects as strong as other opioids:
edition of NightWalkers,

Is Methadone the Key to Less Addictive Opioid Pain Medicines? Magnesium and RLS
June 14, 2021
RLS By Maddie Lionbe
Foundation Research
Coordinator Magnesium is a natural
occurring miner...

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The Restless Legs Syndrome Foundation is the leading organization for science-based
education and patient services for people suffering from restless legs syndrome (RLS). It is
also the only organization with a dedicated research grant program to advance promising
research leading to new treatments and a cure. Our goals are simple: increase awareness of
B LO G A RC H I V E
RLS, improve treatments, and, through research, find a cure.

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