Ok this is the first draft of the opioid FAQ I put together. It is by
no means complete and any contribution would be appriciated. Please send all
info to my mail box at mdh@debug.cuc.ab.ca.  Most of the information is there
and any missing or incorrect info is in the FAQ just let me know.

 Here it is....
 

OPIOID FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS FILE

Editor: Mike Hamilton <mdh@debug.cuc.ab.ca>
Last Update: 10 Jan. 94
Newsgroup : alt.drugs

********** Article Separation

          ** Contents **

Glossary on terms used in FAQ

Opioid Info:
Natural (known as opiates):
 Morphine
 Codeine
Semi-Synthetic (known as opioids):
 Heroin
 Hydrocodone (Hycodan)
 Hydromorphone (Dilaudid)
 Meperidine (Demerol)
 Oxycodone (Percodan)
Synthetic (also known as opioids):
 Fentanyl (Sublimaze)
 Methadone (Dolophine)
 Propoxyphene (Darvon)
 Pentazocine (Talwin)

Opioid Addiction and Withdrawal

**********

 The FAQ will use morphine as the standard opioid and base all other
opioids in relation to it. (Kinda like class inheritance in C++).

**********

A little glossary to start the FAQ:

opiate  - narcotic analgesic derived from a natural source(opium poppy)
opioid  - narcotic analgesic that is either semi or fully synthetic
 - also refers to entire family of both opiates and opioids
IM      - intramuscular injection
SC      - subcutaneous injection

**********

      **  Morphine  **

Synopsis
 Morphine is naturally occurring substance in the opium poppy,
 Papaver somniferum.  It is a potent narcotic analgesic, and its
 primary clinical use is in the management of moderately severe
 and severe pain.  After heroin, morphine has the greatest
 dependence liability of the narcotic analgesics in common use.
 Morphine is administered by several routes (injected, smoked,
 sniffed, or swallowed); but when injected particularly
 intravenously, morphine can produce intense euphoria and a general
 state of well-being and relaxation.  Regular use can result in
 the rapid development of tolerance to these effects.  Profound
 physical and psychological dependence can also rapidly develop,
 and withdrawal sickness upon abrupt cessation of heroin use; many
 of the symptoms resemble those produced by a case of moderately
 severe flu.

 Morphine is infrequently encountered in the North American street
 drug culture.  However, mainly because of its availability in
 hospitals, there have been several documented cases of morphine
 dependence among health professionals.

Drug Source
 Morphine is isolated from crude opium, which is a resinous
 prep of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum.

Trade Name
 Roxinal, MS Contin, Morphine Sulfate

Street Names
 "M", morph, Miss Emma

Drug Combinations
 Use of morphine plus cocaine, as well as of morphine plus
 methamphetamine, has been reported.  However, such combinations
 are not frequently encountered.

Medical Uses
 * symptomatic relief of moderately severe to severe pain;
 * relief of certain types of difficult or labored breathing;
 * suppression of severe cough (rarely);
 * suppression of severe diarrhea (e.g., that produced by cholera).
 

Physical Appearance
 Morphine is legally available only in the form of its water-soluble
 salts.  Most common are morphine sulfate and morphine hydrochloride.
 Both are fine white crystalline powders, bitter to the taste.  Both
 are soluble in water and slightly soluble in alcohol.

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 For moderate to severe pain the optimal intramuscular dosage is
 considered to be 10 mg per 70 kg body weight every four hours.
 The typical dose range is from 5 to 20 mg every four hours,
 depending on the severity of the pain.  The oral dose range is
 between 8 and 20 mg; but with oral administration morphine has
 substantially less analgesic potency (approximately one-tenth of
 the effect produced by subcutaneous injection) because it is
 rapidly destroyed as it passes through the liver immediately
 after absorption.  The intravenous route is employed primarily
 for severe post-operative pain or in an emergency; in this case
 the dose range is between 4 and 10 mg, and the analgesic effect
 ensues almost immediately.

Nonmedical
 Irregular or intermittent users (who are not substituting the drug
 for another narcotic analgesic) may start and continue to use doses
 within the therapeutic range (e.i., up to 20 mg).  However, regular
 users who employ morphine for its subjectively pleasurable effects
 frequently increase the dose as tolerance develops.  To take several
 hundred milligrams per day is common, and there are reliable reports
 of up to four or five grams (4000 - 5000 mg) per day.
 

Routes Of Administration
 Morphine may be taken orally in tablet form, and can also injected
 subcutaneously, intramuscularly, or intravenously; the last is the
 route preferred by those who are dependent on morphine.

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Low Doses (single doses of 5 - 10 mg administered by S.C or IM injection in
non-tolerant users)

CNS, behavioral, subjective:
 suppression the sensation of and emotional response to pain;
 euphoria; drowsiness, lethargy, relaxation; difficulty in
 concentrating; decreased physical activity in some users and
 increased physical activity in others; mild anxiety or fear;
 pupillary constriction, blurred vision, impaired night vision,
 suppression of cough reflex.

Respiratory:
 slightly reduced respiratory rate.

Gastrointestinal:
 nausea and vomiting; constipation; loss of appetite; decreased
 gastric motility.
 
Other:
 slight drop in body temperature; sweating; reduced libido; prickly
 or tingling sensation on the skin (particularly after intravenous
 injection).

Duration
 4 - 5 hours

Dependency Potential
 high, continued use results in both psychological and physical
 dependency

**********

       **  Codeine  **

Drug Source
 Codeine is found in opium in concentrations between %0.1 and %2.
 Because of the small concentration found in nature, most codeine
 found in medical products is synthesized from morphine via the
 methylation of the hydroxyl group found on the second non-aromatic
 ring.

Trade Name
 There are no commercial name for products containing only
 codeine in US. Found under common name of codeine.
 Canada does have a codeine only syrup available under
 Paveral. Mainly found in combination products.

Street Name
 T-three's (Tylenol #3 w/ codeine), schoolboy, cough syrup
 
Medical Uses
 * relief of mild to moderate pain
 * relief of non-productive cough
 * relief of diarrhea

Drug Combinations
 Sold under many name brand products, the most popular being the
 Tylenol with Codeine series, the number on the tablet corresponds
 to the amount of codeine and caffeine found in the each tablet.

 Tylenol #1 w/ codeine -  8 mg codeine, 15 mg caffeine
 Tylenol #2 w/ codeine - 15 mg codeine, 15 mg caffeine
 Tylenol #3 w/ codeine - 30 mg codeine, 30 mg caffeine
 Tylenol #4 w/ codeine - 60 mg codeine, no caffeine
 
 note: all tablets contain same amount of acetaminophen (300 mg)
 
 Fiorinal (aspirin, caffeine, barbital, codeine)

 Many other brand name product combinations.

Physical Appearance
 Tylenol w/ codeine series are imprinted with number on one side and
 other side is Tylenol label(McNeil).

Controlled Substance Status
 As a single product codeine is a schedule II controlled substance
 in the US.
 When combined with other non-controlled substance, and depending
 on amount per dose unit, codeine combined products range from
 schedule III to V.
 Canada has OTC codeine products available if product has no more
 than 8 mg of codeine per unit dose. Some US areas may have codeine
 preps available OTC, but usually require release form.
 As an interesting fact, a travelers handbook noted that Greece has
 banned codeine in that country (no idea on what it's status is now)
 so be careful when traveling there.

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 Pain relief : 30mg - 220mg oral or equivalent dose SC or IM
 
 Diarrhea relief : 10mg - 20mg orally
 
 Cough suppressant : 5mg - 15mg orally

Nonmedical
 Doses can range from 30mg up to 400mg. LD50 for codeine is 800mg in
 a average nontolerant person.
 At doses of > 250mg adverse effects tend to arise, including intense
 itching, flushed skin, dizziness, sedation, nausea and vomiting
 
Routes Of Administration
 Usually taken orally but can be injected IM or SC. The IV route is
 not recommended as reactions such as facial swelling, pulmonary
 edema and convulsions can occur.

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 Effects begin at 30mg and tend to mimic those of morphine, except
 sedation and euphoria are less intense.

Respiratory:
 same as morphine but less intense.

Gastrointestinal:
 same as morphine but nausea and vomiting are less common and
 constipation less severe.

Other:
 alleocodone is a schedule II drug, and when combined
 with other non-controlled drugs, is found from schedule III-IV.

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 as a cough suppressant 5mg - 10mg
 for pain relief 10mg - 30mg

Nonmedical
 doses are similar to those for pain relief

Routes Of Administration
 Usually taken orally but can be inject via three routes. Unknown if
 hydrocodone can be sniffed or smoked. Sniffing is likely possible.
 

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 Has similar effects as morphine but less sedation and euphoria

Respiratory:
 Less depression than morphine.

Gastrointestinal:
 Less likely to cause nausea and vomiting than morphine.

Other:
 Hydrocodone is a weaker opioid than morphine but still a effective
 opioid with similar potency to oxycodone.

Duration
 3 - 4 hours

Dependency Potential
 moderately low, much less potential than morphine

**********

        **  Hydromorphone  **

Drug Source
 Synthetically produced from morphine.

Trade Name
 Dilaudid

Street Name
 Dillies

Medical Uses
 * relief of moderate to severe pain
 * relief of severe cough

Drug Combinations
 most commonly used as a single product

Physical Appearance
 usually bought as tablets, or injectable solution

Controlled Substance Status
 Hydromorphone, like most single product opioids, is a schedule II
 opioid.

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 for pain relief 1mg - 2mg

Nonmedical
 same as pain relief doses

Routes Of Administration
 Can be administered orally, by three routes of injection, and
 by sniffing. Unknown if smoking is an effective route.

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 Hydrocodone has effects similar to morphine, except euphoria is
 similar to codeine, nausea and vomiting is quite rare, and
 sedation is practically non-existent

Respiratory:
 Hydrocodone depresses respiration minimally.

Gastrointestinal:
 Hydromorphone effects GI tract very little.

Other:
 Although hydromorphone's euphoria pales with other opioids
 it's abuse potential comes from the fact the rush experienced
 from IV use is very similar to heroin's.

 Hydromorphone is one of the most used opioids in the relief of
 pain for the terminally ill.  The reasons being it's minimal
 side effects, and high potency.

Duration
 3 - 4 hours

Dependency Potential
 moderately high

**********

         **  Meperidine  **

Drug Source
 Meperidine is completely synthetic and can be produced with
 dichlorodiethyl methylamine and benzyl cyanide.

Trade Name
 Demerol

Street Name
 Demmies

Medical Uses
 * originally found to be useful for muscle spasms but the
   discovery of it's analgesic properties has resulted in
   it's almost exclusive use for relief of moderate to severe
   pain

Drug Combinations
 usually found as a single product, with few combination products.
 Is found in combination with acetaminophen in Demerol APAP

Physical Appearance
 Demerol tablets are small white tablets with the name
 Winthrop on one side

Controlled Substance Status
 Schedule II substance in US

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 pain relief is achieved with approx. 50mg - 150mg injected
 or 200mg - 300mg oral

Nonmedical
 doses similar to those used in medical settings are used in
 recreational use.

Routes Of Administration
 orally, three injection routes, and sniffing are possible,
 unknown if smoking is possible

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 same as morphine but less sedation, less intense euphoria

Respiratory:
 respiratory depression tends to be less common and less intense
 than morphine

Gastrointestinal:
 nausea and vomiting are reportedly common with oral use, but
 less when administered via injection

Duration
 3 - 4 hours

Dependency Potential
 reported to be less than or equal to that of morphine

**********

        **  Oxycodone  **

Drug Source
 synthesized from codeine

Trade Name
 only found as a compound product combined with aspirin or
 acetaminophen. Available in Canada as a single product in
 the form of a suppository

Street Name
 Percs

Medical Uses
 * relief of moderate to severe pain

Drug Combinations
 Percodan is aspirin and oxycodone
 Percocet is acetaminophen and oxycodone

Physical Appearance
 Percodan tablets are color coded according to quantity of oxycodone
 in each tablet, the pink have ~2.5mg and the orange and green having
 twice as much

Controlled Substance Status
 Schedule II in US

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 10 - 20mg oral for pain relief
 5 - 15mg injection

Nonmedical
 Doses similar to those used in a medical setting are used

Routes Of Administration
 Can be administered orally, three injection routes, sniffed
 and possibly smoked.

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 Same as morphine but milder.

Respiratory:
 Less respiratory depression than morphine

Gastrointestinal:
 Less constipating than morphine

Duration
 3 - 4 hours

Dependency Potential
 Moderate

**********

         **  Fentanyl  **

Drug Source
 Synthetically produced

Trade Name
 Sublimaze

Street Name
 China white

Medical Uses
 Mainly relief of moderate to severe pain and as a surgical
 anesthetic

Drug Combinations
 none

Physical Appearance
 Found as a injectable solution, and a transdermal patch

Controlled Substance Status
 Schedule II in US

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 50ug - 200ug

Nonmedical
 same range as medical use

Routes Of Administration
 can be administered via three injection routes, sniffed and smoked

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 euphoria is less than morphine

Respiratory:
 same as morphine but has potential to cause respiratory muscles
 to go into spasm and result in respiratory arrest

Gastrointestinal:
 less constipating that morphine

Duration
 1 - 2 hours

Dependency Potential
 moderately high

**********

         **  Methadone  **

Drug Source
 synthetically produced

Trade Name
 Dolophine

Street Name
 Dollies

Medical Uses
 occasionally used for pain relief, but main use is in opioid
 withdrawal treatment as a substitute drug

Drug Combinations
 none

Physical Appearance
 found as a fruity solution for oral use, in wafers, and tablets
 also found as a injectable solution

Controlled Substance Status
 Schedule II in US

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 3 - 5mg provides same pain relief as 10mg morphine

Nonmedical
 rarely used non-medically, but doses used are approx. same
 as medical doses

Routes Of Administration
 can be injected via three routes, taken orally, unknown if
 methadone can be smoked, can be sniffed

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 Oral use provides little euphoria and tends to block opioid
 receptors in brain, so commonly used as a maintenance drug
 during rehab.

Respiratory:
 Produces little depression in contrast to morphine

Gastrointestinal:
 produces constipation of less intensity than morphine

Other:
 Developed by Nazi Germany during WWII as Germany was unable
 to acquire adequate supplies of morphine.

Duration
 first dose last approx. 8 hours and subsequent doses last 18 - 24
 hours.

Dependency Potential
 oral use provides little euphoria so little abuse potential in
 that form. When injected, methadone give very similar effects to
 morphine so has similar addiction potential.

**********

         **  Propoxyphene  **

Drug Source
 Synthetically produced with similar structure to that of methadone

Trade Name
 Darvon, Darvon N

Street Name
 none

Medical Uses
 for relief of mild pain

Drug Combinations
 Darvon compound is aspirin and propoxyphene

Physical Appearance
 Darvon N as pink oval pills

Controlled Substance Status
 Schedule III in US

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 range from 50mg - 150mg of hydrochloride

Nonmedical
 similar to medical dose ranges.

Routes Of Administration
 can be taken orally, three possible injection routes, no info
 on possible intranasal or smoked administration

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
  oral use provides very little euphoria, mild sedation;
  at larger doses sedation becomes quite prominent and symptoms
  such as staggering and slurred speech become apparent.

Respiratory:
 little respiratory depression in medical dose range

Gastrointestinal:
 little effect on GI tract

Other:
 IV use is reported to give rush similar to heroin;
 poor analgesic with standard dose providing less pain relief
 than standard aspirin dose

Duration
 3 - 4 hours

Dependency Potential
 low

**********

         **  Pentazocine  **

Drug Source
 synthetically produced

Trade Name
 Talwin

Street Name
 yellow footballs

Medical Uses
 for relief of moderate to moderately severe pain

Drug Combinations
 Talwin NX - pentazocine and nalaxone (opioid antagonist)

Physical Appearance
 usually found in orange-yellow tablets

Controlled Substance Status
 Schedule III

Dosage
~~~~~~
Medical
 50mg - 100mg for pain relief

Nonmedical
 similar to medical dosage

Routes Of Administration
 can be taken orally, three injection routes, and sniffed
 possibly smoked

Short Term Use
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CNS, Behavioral, Subjective:
 poor opioid, very little euphoria, mainly just sedates and
 clouds mind, little recreational use

Respiratory:
 less depression than morphine

Gastrointestinal:
 very little constipation or nausea, vomiting occurs

Other:
 as a opioid agonist/antagonist has potential to cause
 psychotic effects such as hallucinations, severe confusion

Duration
 3 - 4 hours

Dependency Potential
 moderate potential, similar to hydrocodone

**********

   Opioid Dependence And Withdrawal

 Opioids have specific withdrawal and dependence characteristics
common to all opioids, varying according to the specific drug.  All opioids
cause both physical and psychological dependence with prolonged use.

 Depending on the opioid in question withdrawal can become evident
after continued use in as little time as 2 weeks or as long as 2 months.

 Withdrawal is commonly overstated by media and tends to be similar
to bad case of flu.  This is due to the fact that most opioid users don't
tend to be able to acquire enough drug to result in severe withdrawal.  It
must be noted that physical symptoms may be similar to flu, psychological
symptoms can be quite painful.  Depression, mood swings, hypersensitivity
to pain are some common symptoms.  Opioid withdrawal DOES NOT endanger life
as does alcohol and other depressant withdrawal.
 

**********

 If anyone has any info that they would like to share with me
and possibly have included in this FAQ, please send all mail to my
mailbox at mdh@debug.cuc.ab.ca

** End of FAQ