Opioids and Oral Surgery

摘要

A hot topic that is gaining traction in the media and amongst professional circles is the rise in opioid addiction amongst the general population. I recently watched a TV documentary, which identified that some individuals begin their addiction as young as their early teenage years, by acquiring these drugs from their parents' bathroom cabinets. This then pervades into their adult life, starting a cycle of addiction that is difficult to break. Adult addicts also often start their pathway to addiction with opioid drugs prescribed legally by their health care practitioner. They then turn to illegal sources, once this supply has run out and they have already become dependent on the effects of these drugs.