What to Do if You Have OpioidInduced Hyperalgesia?
What to Do if You Have Opioid-Induced Hyperalgesia?
The development of a condition known as “opioid induced hyperalgesia,” in which a person becomes excessively sensitive to pain while taking opioids, making their pain worse rather than better.
It is just one of the serious long-term side effects of opioids that have been researched for their effects on long-term chronic pain.
Strong painkillers are the primary purpose of prescription opioids.
They have typically been used to manage intense, sudden pain. However, many individuals have started using them for chronic pain over the past few decades.
In this blog, we will explore the effects of opioids and treatment for hyperalgesia.
What Effects Do Opioids Have on Your Brain’s Pain Reaction?
When opioids bind to receptors on brain cells, they cause chemical reactions that inhibit pain signals. They function to lessen pain in this manner, at least in the beginning.
Your cells respond to this ongoing stimulation by expressing more opioid receptors over days, weeks, and months. When those receptors are idle, they release more pain receptors, which over time, actually makes the pain worse rather than better. We refer to this as opioid-induced hyperalgesia.
To achieve the same level of pain relief as before, patients frequently need to take more of these medicines, which increases the risk of drowsiness, respiratory depression, and sudden death.
What are the options for treating hyperalgesia?
The disease of hyperalgesia is curable and may improve with conventional therapy.
Reducing opioid dose over time
Your doctor could advise you to reduce your opioid dose if your usage of opioids is the cause of your hyperalgesia. You can experience terrible symptoms and pain of opioid withdrawal due to prolonged therapy time. Your doctor, however, can help you manage your symptoms.
Changing to different opioid medications
Your doctor may prescribe other opioids in fewer amounts. Methadone, oxycodone, and tramadol are three opioids for treating hyperalgesia.
Using N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist medicines
Some research claims that NMDA receptors make you more sensitive to pain. Drugs called NMDA receptor antagonists block pain receptors and reduce pain responses. Two famous NMDA receptor antagonists used to treat hyperalgesia are ketamine and methadone.
Other medications
Similar medical problems brought on by nerve irritation or injury include hyperalgesia. As a result, it may respond to treatments like gabapentin, pregabalin, tricyclic antidepressants, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.
Conclusion
Contact your doctor if you believe that prolonged opioid use is not an adequate treatment for hyperalgesia or if you believe you may be suffering from opioid-induced hyperalgesia. They can assist you in developing a plan that will allow you to gradually reduce or stop using chronic opioid medication and explore other, more reliable methods of treating your chronic pain.
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best part is that opioid-induced hyperalgesia can and will go away with time after opioid use is stopped. It may take weeks or months to gradually stop using opioids, but once you do, your body’s opioid receptors will return to normal. Many patients who stop using chronic opioids report a considerable reduction in pain.
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