To sign up for updates or to access your subscriber preferences, please enter your contact information. Skip to main content. Mono Bar U. Main menu. Territories for mental and substance use disorders. Ellos escuchan. They Hear You. Solr Mobile Search. Share Buttons. Page title Naloxone. Main page content Naloxone is an opioid antagonist medication that is used to reverse an opioid overdose.
What Is Naloxone? Candidates for naloxone are those who: Take high doses of opioids for long-term management of chronic pain Receive rotating opioid medication regimens Have been discharged from emergency medical care following opioid poisoning or intoxication Take certain extended-release or long-acting opioid medication Those who have had a period of abstinence to include those recently released from incarceration.
In most states, people who are at risk or who know someone at risk for an opioid overdose can be trained on how to give naloxone. Families can ask their pharmacists or health care provider how to use the devices. Naloxone works to reverse opioid overdose in the body for only 30 to 90 minutes.
But many opioids remain in the body longer than that. Because of this, it is possible for a person to still experience the effects of an overdose after a dose of naloxone wears off. Also, some opioids are stronger and might require multiple doses of naloxone. Therefore, one of the most important steps to take is to call so the individual can receive immediate medical attention. NIDA is supporting research for stronger formulations for use with potent opioids like fentanyl. People who are given naloxone should be observed constantly until emergency care arrives.
They should be monitored for another 2 hours after the last dose of naloxone is given to make sure breathing does not slow or stop. Drug dependence occurs with repeated use, causing the neurons to adapt so they only function normally in the presence of the drug. The absence of the drug causes several physiological reactions, ranging from mild in the case of caffeine, to potentially life-threatening, such as with heroin.
Some chronic pain patients are dependent on opioids and require medical support to stop taking the drug. Drug addiction is a chronic disease characterized by compulsive, or uncontrollable, drug seeking and use despite harmful consequences and long-lasting changes in the brain.
The changes can result in harmful behaviors by those who misuse drugs, whether prescription or illicit drugs. People with physical dependence on opioids may have withdrawal symptoms within minutes after they are given naloxone. Withdrawal symptoms might include headaches, changes in blood pressure, rapid heart rate, sweating, nausea, vomiting, and tremors. While this is uncomfortable, it is usually not life threatening.
The risk of death for someone overdosing on opioids is worse than the risk of having a bad reaction to naloxone. Clinicians in emergency room settings are being trained to offer patients immediate relief and referral to treatment for opioid use disorder with effective medications after an opioid overdose is reversed. NIDA offers tools for emergency clinicians here. Side effects from naloxone are rare, but people might have allergic reactions to the medicine. Overall, naloxone is a safe medicine.
But it only reverses an overdose in people with opioids in their systems and will not reverse overdoses from other drugs like cocaine or methamphetamine. Buajordet, I. European Journal of Emergency Medicine, Darke, S. Mattick, and L. Degenhardt, The ratio of non-fatal to fatal heroin overdose. Addiction, Osterwalder, J. A Prospective Clinical Study. Journal of Toxicology: Clinical Toxicology, Krieter, P.
The Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, FDA moves quickly to approve easy-to-use nasal spray to treat opioid overdose [news release]. FDA approves first generic naloxone nasal spray to treat opioid overdose [news release].
Food and Drug Administration. FDA approves higher dosage of naloxone nasal spray to treat opioid overdose. Pain Medicine, p. Dunn, K. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, Coffin, P. Annals of Internal Medicine, Dowell D, H. Co-prescribing naloxone in Medicare Part D increases [news release]. Hedegaard H, M. Statement on continued efforts to increase availability of all forms of naloxone to help reduce opioid overdose deaths [news release].
Dhowan, B. Journal of Controlled Release, Nandakumar, R. Gollakota, and J. Sunshine, Opioid overdose detection using smartphones. Science Translational Medicine, This publication is available for your use and may be reproduced in its entirety without permission from NIDA.
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