Opiate Dependence or Addiction?

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As we close out Recovery Awareness month
(September) the need for recovery and addiction
treatment persist. Unfortunately, a great deal of
stigma remains. Many people complain of being
judged when presenting prescriptions to
pharmacist. This is known to happen when patients
present prescriptions for opiates used for pain
management and also when being treated with
medically assisted therapy for Opiate
addiction. This judgment is unfortunate and
aided by confusion between Opiate dependence and
addiction. Dependence denotes the patient is
requiring opiates and dependent on those
opiates. It does not indicate the patient is
addicted. Dependence indicates a physical
component including the possibility of tolerance
and withdrawal. Addiction is neurological and
describes behavior. Addictive behaviors include
being unable to control drug use, destructive
behaviors and cravings. Another confusing factor
is that one can have addictive behavior without
addiction and one may also have dependence
without addiction.
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What is not needed is judgment or misuse of terms
that deter people from seeking treatment or
obtaining prescriptions. Physicians treating
patients with opiates monitor for signs of
addictive behavior and monitor physical
dependence and medication efficacy. It is not
within the scope of practice for pharmacist or
other non physicians to judge patients or fill
prescriptions based solely on a diagnosis. Two
different patients may have the same diagnosis
but have very different clinical needs. It is the
job and clinical assessment of physicians that
should be the determining factor in a patients
medication needs. What physicians do need to
account for is the availability of other means to
treat pain and addiction. At our Opioid Treatment
Center in Marietta, GA. We use acupuncture and
physiotherapy to avoid the need for opiates. We
also treat addiction with (Buprenorphine) in
addition to counseling. As recovery awareness
month closes we should ALL remember to be
nonjudgmental and use alternatives to opiates
whenever possible. Here at Acupuncture and
Injury, our goal is to have our patients pain
free without pillsTM.
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