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Opioid use disorders typically require long-term treatment and care with the goal of reducing the person's risks and improving their long-term physical and psychological condition. [108] First-line management involves the use of opioid replacement therapies, particularly methadone and buprenorphine/naloxone.
[81] [82] Concerns regarding the long-term effects of benzodiazepines have been raised since 1980. [83] These concerns are still not fully answered. A review in 2006 of the literature on use of benzodiazepine and nonbenzodiazepine hypnotics concluded that more research is needed to evaluate the long-term effects of hypnotic drugs. [84]
"Substance use pertains to using select substances such as alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, etc. that can cause dependence or harmful side effects."On the other hand, substance abuse is the use of drugs such as prescriptions, over-the-counter medications, or alcohol for purposes other than what they are intended for or using them in excessive ...
The Beers Criteria for Potentially Inappropriate Medication Use in Older Adults, commonly called the Beers List, [1] are guidelines published by the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) for healthcare professionals to help improve the safety of prescribing medications for adults 65 years and older in all except palliative settings.
In older adults, opioid use is associated with increased adverse effects such as "sedation, nausea, vomiting, constipation, urinary retention, and falls". [72] As a result, older adults taking opioids are at greater risk for injury. [73] Opioids do not cause any specific organ toxicity, unlike many other drugs, such as aspirin and paracetamol.
Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder .
Long-term use may increase the risk of both cognitive and physical decline. [14] [15] It is unclear whether they affect the risk of death generally. [14] However, in older adults they do appear to increase the risk of death. [16] Possible effects of anticholinergics include:
The latter reflects physical dependence in which the body adapts to the drug, requiring more of it to achieve a certain effect (tolerance) [25] and eliciting drug-specific physical or mental symptoms if drug use is abruptly ceased (withdrawal). Physical dependence can happen with the chronic use of many drugs—including even appropriate ...