The molecular neurobiology and neuropathology of opioid use disorder.

ABSTRACT: The number of people diagnosed with opioid use disorder has skyrocketed as a consequence of the opioid epidemic and the increased prescribing of opioid drugs for chronic pain relief. Opioid use disorder is characterized by loss of control of drug taking, continued drug use in the presence of adverse consequences, and repeated relapses to drug taking even after long periods of abstinence. Patients who suffer from opioid use disorder often present with cognitive deficits that are potentially secondary to structural brain abnormalities that vary according to the chemical composition of the abused opioid. This review details the neurobiological effects of oxycodone, morphine, heroin, methadone, and fentanyl on brain neurocircuitries by presenting the acute and chronic effects of these drugs on

SUBMITTER: Blackwood CA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9090195 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature