Melanie Dotts
Jose’ Batista
Kyle Pizzichili
Overview
• Heroin is an opioid drug that is
synthesized from morphine
(a naturally occurring
substance extracted from the
seed pod of the Asian opium
“poppy plant”)
• Heroin is a highly addictive
drug
• It is a “downer” or depressant
that affects the brain’s
pleasure system, and
interferes with the brain’s
ability to perceive pain.
Street Names
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Smack
H
Tar
Chiba or Chiva
Junk
Brown sugar
Skag
Mud, or Mexican mud
Mexican horse
Mexican brown
Dragon
Dope
China
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
White, or White stuff
White lady, or White horse
Boy, or Whiter boy
He
Black, Black tar, Black pearl,
Black stuff, or Black eagle
Snow
Snowball
Scat
Sack
Skunk
Number 3,4,8
Appearance
• Heroin usually appears as a
white or brown powder, or
as a black sticky substance
(known as “black tar”
heroin)
Methods of Use
• Injected
• Inhaled by snorting or sniffing
• Smoked
How Heroin is Used in Selected Areas
How does the drug work?
• When heroin enters the brain, it is converted back into
morphine. This binds to molecules on cells known as opoid
receptors.
• These receptors are located in many areas of the brain (and
other areas of the body), especially those involved in the
perception of pain and reward.
• Opioid receptors are also located in the brain stem, which
controls automatic processes critical for life; such as blood
pressure, arousal, and respiration.
Advantages vs. Disadvantages
• Can be used as a pain
reliever/sedative
• Gives people the
“high” or “rush” they
are craving
• Highly addictive
• Affects chemicals in
your brain
• Heroin's overdose
leads to certain
death due to major
breathing and heart
collapse
How much does it cost?
• Heroin is sold either as individual doses, usually in $10
"bags", or by weight.
Short-term Effects
• After an intravenous injection of
heroin, users report feeling a surge
of euphoria (“rush”), accompanied
by a dry mouth, warm flushing of
the skin, heaviness of the
extremities, and clouded mental
functioning.
• Following this euphoria, the user
goes “on the nod” (an alternately
wakeful and drowsy state).
• Users who do not inject the drug
may not experience the initial rush,
but other effects are the same.
Long-term Effects
• Regular heroin use changes
the functioning of the
brain.
• One result is tolerance, in
which more of the drug is
needed to achieve the
same intensity of effect.
• Another result is
dependence, characterized
by the need to continue
use of the drug to avoid
withdraw symptoms.
• Chronic users may develop:
• Collapsed veins
• Infection of the heart lining
and valves
• Abscesses
• Constipation
• Gastrointestinal cramping
• Liver or kidney disease
*Pulmonary complications,
including various types of
pneumonia, may result from
the poor health of the user
as well as from heroin’s
effects on breathing.
Long-term Effects
Dependence
• Chronic use of heroin
leads to physical
dependence; a state in
which the body has
adapted to the
presence of the drug.
• If a dependent user
reduces or stops use of
the drug abruptly, he or
she may experience
severe symptoms of
withdrawal.
• These symptoms, which can
begin as early as a few hours
after the last drug administration,
can include:
• Restlessness
• Muscle and bone pain
• Insomnia
• Diarrhea and vomiting
• Cold flashes with goose
bumps
• Kicking movements
*Users also experience severe craving
for the drug during withdrawal (which
can precipitate continued abuse
and/or relapse).
Dependence continued..
• It is estimated that about 23% of individuals who use
heroin become dependent on it.
Abuse/Addiction
• HIGHLY addictive
• Even a single dose of
heroin can start a person
on the road to addiction.
• Heroin abuse is
associated with a number
of serious health
conditions including fatal
overdose, spontaneous
abortion, and infectious
diseases like hepatitis and
HIV.
• Signs of heroin abuse include:
• Behavioral changes
• Hyperactivity followed by
fatigue
• Disorientation
• Irresponsibility at work or
school
• Lying
• Wearing long shirts and pants
even during warm weather
• Increased sleeping
• Slurred speech
• Track marks on arms or legs
• Weight loss
• Constant runny nose
• Scabs or bruises due to
picking at the skin
What groups are most likely to
use heroin?
• Heroin users are predominantly white males, over age 30,
who live in central city areas
• Most heroin sellers tend to be young adults between the
ages of 18 and 30
• Among heroin users, young Blacks are resisting injection
initiation while young Whites exhibit the opposite tendency.
New research should investigate reasons for this trend and
its impact on the HIV epidemic and future service needs
Treatment
• For many heroin abusers, an inpatient treatment
program is an ideal option. Inpatient treatment programs
are designed to:
• Help heroin abusers overcome a physical and psychological
addiction to the drug
• Feature a detoxification period (can vary from person to person
depending on the severity of the drug abuse)
• Help heroin abusers understand why they abuse the drug, as well
as what they can do to maintain a sober lifestyle
Treatment
• Outpatient treatment
programs for heroin
addiction are ideal for
abusers who have already
successfully completed an
inpatient program.
• Outpatient programs
provide abusers support
through a number of
programs and meetings.
(However, unlike an
inpatient treatment center,
an outpatient center does
not provide abusers with a
controlled environment).
• Many treatment
programs for heroin
abusers involve the use of
methadone. This is used
as:
• A medication due to its
ability to block the
receptors in the brain
that constantly require
heroin
• Help to curb heroin
cravings and lessen
withdrawal symptoms
Facts and Statistics
• Heroin use has been rising since 2007, growing from 373,000
yearly users to 669,000 in 2012, according to the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
• Heroin overdose deaths have also spiked, increasing 45% from
2006 to 2010, according to the most recently available data
from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
• Law enforcement has been seizing more heroin— the amount
the DEA confiscated at the southwest border almost
quadrupled between 2008 and 2010.
• In 2011, 4.2 million Americans aged 12 or older had used
heroin at least once in their lives.
References
• http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/heroin
• http://www.drugfree.org/drug-guide/heroin
• http://opiophilia.blogspot.com/2013/05/heroin-in-united-states-wheredoes-it.html
• http://time.com/4505/heroin-gains-popularity-as-cheap-doses-floodthe-u-s/
• http://drugabuse.com/library/heroin-abuse/
• http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/heroin/i-ll-just-try-itonce.html
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2268905/