Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0019158 (hepatitis)
 30,205 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Detoxification from opiate addiction has been a medical problem for as long as opiate drugs have been available. Treatment before the discovery of clonidine involved giving another opioid drug with less dangerous consequences of chronic use, such as the long-acting and orally administered once a day methadone, for another opioid mu agonist like heroin, which must be taken intravenously many times a day, thus making rehabilitation, work, and avoidance of hepatitis, HIV, and other illnesses difficult. Although methadone has proved to be very beneficial, it still has significant abuse potential. Naltrexone, because it blocks the effects of all opiates, has facilitated the transformation from addiction to a drug-free state for many recovering addicts. By alleviating withdrawal symptoms and by lessening the detoxification period, clonidine similarly has improved the prospect of recovery from opiate addiction. Relapse, whether withdrawal is treated with clonidine or other new agents or not, occurs with great regularity because repeated opiate use can induce a new acquired drive state--the drive for opiates. In addition, with powerful withdrawal symptoms during abstinence, opiate relapse is difficult to prevent without an adequate treatment program. The efficacy of clonidine and other medical magic bullets for withdrawal distress needs to be given as part of a long-term recovery program which not only allows the brain to re-establish normal homeostatic changes in the drug-free state but also provides sufficient motivation for new approaches to achieving and sustaining pleasurable existence.
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PMID:Opiate addiction and the locus coeruleus. The clinical utility of clonidine, naltrexone, methadone, and buprenorphine. 845 48

Millions of people in this country are infected with Hepatitis C; however, long-term treatment for this disease is not always successful. Chisolm Biologicals produces a transfer factor panel for hepatitis A, B, and C that appears to be effective in treating hepatitis. Other products, including Thy-Mate and Liver Support, may also help treat hepatitis. Patients with hepatitis should tell their doctor what products they are using and have their physicians monitor liver enzyme levels and viral loads. One study of 24 patients showed success in using Naltrexone, Alpha Lipoic acid, milk thistle, and Hypercurium in treating hepatitis B and C. Contact information is included.
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PMID:New treatments for hepatitis B and C [antigen-specific transfer for A, B & C (chisolm biologicals) and thymate]. 1136 48

Naltrexone, an opioid receptor antagonist, has been claimed to have anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects both in vitro and in vivo. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of naltrexone on acute hepatitis induced by intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 20 microg/kg)/D-galactosamine (D-gal, 700 mg/kg) in conscious ICR mice. Results demonstrated that post-treatment with naltrexone (20 mg/kg, i.p.) significantly attenuated the deleterious liver function in mice treated with LPS/D-gal. It was also found that naltrexone significantly inhibited the elevation of plasma tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) caused by LPS/D-gal. The overproduction of nitric oxide (NO) and superoxide anions induced by LPS/D-gal were also significantly reduced by naltrexone. Moreover, infiltration of neutrophils into the liver of mice 12 h after treatment with LPS/D-gal was also decreased by naltrexone. In conclusion, the beneficial effects of naltrexone on LPS/D-gal-induced hepatitis result from its inhibition of pro-inflammatory factors and antioxidant effects. Thus, naltrexone is of therapeutic potential for treating liver injury.
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PMID:Naltrexone protects against lipopolysaccharide/D-galactosamine-induced hepatitis in mice. 1902 76

Heroin addiction is one of the most devastating and expensive of public health problems. The most effective treatment is opioid replacement therapy. Replacement of heroin, a short-acting euphoriant with methadone or other opioids that have significantly longer duration of action provides a number of therapeutic benefits. Opioid detoxification has a role in both preventing acute withdrawal and maintaining long-term abstinence. Opioid-based detoxification is based on the principle of cross-tolerance, in which one opioid is replaced with another one that is slowly tapered. For the treatment of heroin addicts a wide range of psychosocial and pharmacotherapeutic treatments are available; of these, methadone maintenance therapy has the most evidence of benefit. Methadone maintenance reduces and/or eliminates the use of heroin, reduces the death rate and criminality associated with heroin use, and allows patients to improve their health and social productivity. In addition, enrollment in methadone maintenance has the potential to reduce the transmission of infectious diseases associated with heroin injection, such as hepatitis and HIV. The principal effects of methadone maintenance are to relieve narcotic craving, suppress the abstinence syndrome, and block the euphoric effects associated with heroin. There is growing interest in expanding treatment into primary care, allowing opioid addiction to be managed like other chronic illnesses. Buprenorphine which is a long-acting partial agonist was also approved as pharmacotherapy for opioid dependence. Opioid antagonists can reduce heroin self-administration and opioid craving in detoxified addicts. Naltrexone, which is a long-acting competitive antagonist at the opioid receptors, blocks the subjective and objective responses produced by intravenous opioids. Naltrexone is employed to accelerate opioid detoxification by displacing heroin and as a maintenance agent for detoxified formerly heroin-dependent patients who want to remain opioid-free.
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PMID:[Therapy in heroin addiction]. 2534 42