WASHINGTON – The head of a nonprofit organization that represents drug courts lobbied the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services against increasing access to a key addiction treatment. In an Aug. 19, 2014, letter obtained by The Huffington Post through an open records request, West Huddleston, the then-CEO of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals, wrote HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell and urged her to keep strict caps on the number of opioid addicts doctors can treat with buprenorphine. Use of the medication along with counseling, known as medication-assisted treatment, is considered by public health officials to give opioid addicts the best chance at a recovery. But many drug court judges have opposed the treatment, insisting defendants go cold turkey …

WASHINGTON – The head of a nonprofit organization that represents drug courts lobbied the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services against increasing access to a key addiction treatment. In an Aug. 19, 2014, letter obtained by The Huffington Post through an open records request, West Huddleston, the then-CEO of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals, wrote HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell and urged her to keep strict caps on the number of opioid addicts doctors can treat with buprenorphine. Use of the medication along with counseling, known as medication-assisted treatment, is considered by public health officials to give opioid addicts the best chance at a recovery. But many drug court judges have opposed the treatment, insisting defendants go cold turkey …

W-18
Last August, Canadian police seized 110 illegal fentanyl pills at a home in Alberta province. Yesterday, Global News reported that some of the pills have tested positive for an extremely potent opioid called W-18.
This is certainly a disturbing development, since W-18 is a μ-receptor agonist 100 times more potent than fentanyl. According to B.C. Centre for Disease Control, W-18 is one of a series of 32 synthetic opioids discovered in the 1980s at the University of Alberta. W1 thru W19 are pure μ-receptor agonists; W20 thru W32 are agonist-antagonists (as is buprenorphine.)  W-18 seems to be the most powerful agonist of the group.
The ‘W’ compounds have never been used clinically, and there has been virtually no scientific study of their actions, adverse effects, or reve…

W-18
Last August, Canadian police seized 110 illegal fentanyl pills at a home in Alberta province. Yesterday, Global News reported that some of the pills have tested positive for an extremely potent opioid called W-18.
This is certainly a disturbing development, since W-18 is a μ-receptor agonist 100 times more potent than fentanyl. According to B.C. Centre for Disease Control, W-18 is one of a series of 32 synthetic opioids discovered in the 1980s at the University of Alberta. W1 thru W19 are pure μ-receptor agonists; W20 thru W32 are agonist-antagonists (as is buprenorphine.)  W-18 seems to be the most powerful agonist of the group.
The ‘W’ compounds have never been used clinically, and there has been virtually no scientific study of their actions, adverse effects, or reve…

Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate buprenorphine-naloxone effects on the QTc in youth with opioid dependence. Buprenorphine is a partial agonist that is an effective treatment for opioid dependence. Compared with methadone, it has a lower risk of QTc prolongation in adults, but is less studied in the youth. It may also reduce the risk of torsades de pointes (TdP)—an uncommon variant of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia—that can result in syncope, ventricular fibrillation, and sudden death.
Methods: Secondary analysis of the electrocardiogram data from 95 individuals who participated in a multisite trial for youth with opioid dependence. The participants were randomized to a 2-week (DETOX) or a 12-week course of buprenorphine-naloxone (BUP). At baseline, 12-lead electro…

Objectives: The aim of the study was to evaluate buprenorphine-naloxone effects on the QTc in youth with opioid dependence. Buprenorphine is a partial agonist that is an effective treatment for opioid dependence. Compared with methadone, it has a lower risk of QTc prolongation in adults, but is less studied in the youth. It may also reduce the risk of torsades de pointes (TdP)—an uncommon variant of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia—that can result in syncope, ventricular fibrillation, and sudden death.
Methods: Secondary analysis of the electrocardiogram data from 95 individuals who participated in a multisite trial for youth with opioid dependence. The participants were randomized to a 2-week (DETOX) or a 12-week course of buprenorphine-naloxone (BUP). At baseline, 12-lead electro…