Opioid-addicted women who use marijuana do not perform well in methadone treatment

opioid addiction is a serious and rapidly spreading global problem, and people who experience opioid addiction methadone therapy use it at a much higher rate than the general population. In light of Canada's recent trend towards legalization of cannabis, the authors of a new study published in
investigated the link between cannabis use and methadone treatment results and discussed their findings and their implications.is natural, so its use is harmless and a growingly popular concept. In fact, many opioid addicts believe marijuana can be used as an alternative to methadone and help them control opioid withdrawal symptoms. In addition, a growing number of studies have advocated the use of marijuana instead of opioids to treat chronic pain. Is cannabis as harmless to everyone as claimed? Will it be harmful or beneficial to make marijuana legal and ultimately more accessible?
criminalizing cannabis has no effect on reducing its use, but rather has greater social costs and little impact on public health. Canada is moving toward legalizing marijuana, so it's important for the public to understand the potential risks of marijuana to people who are addicted to opioids that are currently prevalent, especially before it's widely available.
cannabis is a harmless substance in the public perception, mainly because it is less likely to cause death from overuse. Although deaths from cannabis overdoses have not been recorded, other adverse consequences have been noted, including cognitive impairment, respiratory problems and psychiatric symptoms. Vulnerable people, such as those currently in the addiction phase, are at greater risk of experiencing these adverse events., or opioid use disorders, has surged globally, particularly in Canada, leading the Canadian government to declare opioid addiction a public health crisis. Deaths from opioid overdoses are common in Canada, and clinicians and the public are calling for urgent need for appropriate treatment options for people with opioid addiction.
is widely used and is the most commonly used drug in methadone treatment patients (60 per cent of men and 44 per cent of women).
methadone maintenance therapy is currently the longest-used and most widely used drug for opioid addiction. Treat patients with daily doses of methadone to reduce cravings and relieve withdrawal symptoms without producing the same euphoria as other opioids.
While methadone treatment is effective for many patients, there are still patients who continue to use illegally sourced opioids during treatment, which poses a serious health risk of overuse and death. Marijuana is widely used and is the most commonly used drug in methadone treatment patients (60 percent of men and 44 percent of women). The fact that such populations are much more likely to be used than the general population raises the question of how cannabis affects such groups.in our recent study, Publishology of Sex Differences, we looked at the link between marijuana use, especially opioid use, which is also illegally sourced, and methadone treatment outcomes. Previous studies have identified differences in clinical performance and treatment outcomes between men and women, so our study aims to explore gender differences in cannabis use.
study included 777 participants (414 men and 363 women). About 60 per cent of men and 44 per cent of women reported using cannabis. After controlling age, methadone dosage, and length of treatment, we found that if cannabis users were women, they were 82 percent more likely to use illegally sourced opioids while treating methadone.
found that if cannabis users were women, they were 82 percent more likely to use illegally sourced opioids while treating methadone.
treated with methadone also had significantly worse physical and mental performance and higher rates of co-pathological mental illness. Recent studies have found that men and women have different motivations for using marijuana, with women tending to report that the primary purpose of cannabis use is self-treatment, while men are more likely to report using marijuana for recreational purposes. However, we found in this study that women who used marijuana did not turn out to be better than men. Marijuana does not help women and is associated with worse health outcomes.
where are we going next?
, addiction was a male-dominated problem, so previous studies and subsequent clinical practice were primarily male-centric. Addiction treatment programs should take a gender-specific approach to treatment to address the unique needs of men and women. The first step in this approach may be to systematically screen women for methadone maintenance therapy for cannabis use and to address their potential physical and psychological symptoms in addition to opioid addiction, thereby improving outcomes. (Source: BioMedCentral Open Access Publishing)