The New OxyContin

OxyContin is one of the most popular and common prescribed drugs to be abused today. The FDA reported that over half a million people 12 years and older have misused or abused the drug. It has become some ways a new recreational drug within the last ten years. OxyContin is a sustained released form of the opiod narcotic oxycodone. Ever since 1995 it has been available, mainly for individuals with moderate to severe chronic pain. Over time, precisely 12 hours it is supposed to dissolve into the individuals system to provide relief. But when used improperly it can have other effects.

                Most commonly it is crushed or broken then taken. By doing this the individual gets immediate results, and a emotional or euphoric high. Snorting, dissolving, and injecting OxyContin are the common ways in which one can abuse the drug. By ingesting the drug in those ways the risk of overdose is severely increased. There have also been accidental overdoses due to health professional crushing the pill and giving it to patients who can’t swallow.  Due to the abuse and problems that have come up with a new formula that prevents improper use.

                The new formula makes the pill unable to be broken, crushed, or chewed. The formula also makes the pill turn into a gummy substance when it is dissolved which makes it impossible to inject it. This prevents the immediate problems, but then again a person can just take multiple pills to get the high they are craving.

                Overall I think this is a good idea. I know of numerous people who suffer from Oxycontin addiction and this is something very painful to watch. Mainly because these really aren't outlawed, and if you know trick you can get them from a doctor. I think this new formula will limit the ways of abuse and misuse but the overall usage will not go down.  

http://sk8es4mc2l.search.serialssolutions.com/?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_enc=info%3Aofi%2Fenc%3AUTF-8&rfr_id=info:sid/summon.serialssolutions.com&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=NEW+OXYCONTIN+FORMULATION+DISCOURAGES+ABUSE&rft.jtitle=The+American+Journal+of+Nursing&rft.au=Diane+S+Aschenbrenner&rft.date=2010-08-01&rft.pub=Lippincott+Williams+%26+Wilkins&rft.issn=0002-936X&rft.eissn=1538-7488&rft.volume=110&rft.issue=8&rft.spage=28&rft.externalDocID=2118678321&paramdict=en-US

Aschenbrenner, D. (2010). New OXYCONTIN FORMULATION DISCOURAGES ABUSE. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF NURSING, 110(8), 28-29.

doi:10.1097/01. NAJ.0000387686.17252.a4

Marijuana & The Brain

Today marijuana is a hot button topic in America. It is something that is commonly in today’s news, something that is easily to debate.  Much has been made of whether it is right that it has been made legal in some states, and whether some states should follow suit and legalize it also. In this March 2014 journal by Robert J. Hilt, he goes on to discuss a possible side effect of using marijuana. Specifically adolescents who may use marijuana.

                The side effect that he focused on was something that I had never thought of and never heard off. That side effect being long term psychosis or hallucinations. I've personally experienced very short term hallucinations from marijuana, at most the minute, but never long term. The article goes on to say that adolescents who abuse marijuana have a higher chance in developing mental disorders, such as schizophrenia. When looking at mood disorders the correlation was relatively weak.

It is a known fact that an adolescent’s brain is less developed than one of an adult. Different in ways such as information processing pathways, number of neurons, degree of dendritic connections, and degree of myelination. Because of this adolescents who are diagnosed at a younger age with schizophrenia have a poorer future prognosis. Basically anything that interrupts the development of the brain, marijuana is the prime example, can have numerous affects that are still being discovered.

In all I find this article is very interesting, mainly because I have never heard this as a consequence of smoking marijuana. I do not truly believe it all though, if anything I think it is just a coincidence that people who had smoked marijuana developed a mental disorder. Overall I think the journal just blows some case out of proportion as a scare tactic.

http://search.proquest.com/docview/1555292788?pq-origsite=summon

Hilt, R. J. (2014). Cannabis and the adolescent brain. Pediatric Annals, 43(3), 89-90. 
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3928.00904481-20140221-02

Taking Adderall to Heart.

Adderall is one of the most common drugs used on colleges. Mainly because it is legal is it is easier to attain, and second because Adderall is a stimulant. That means that it usually boost a person in energy.  Commonly and legally Adderall is used to treat those who suffer from ADHD, it helps them to focus and limit distractions. Adderall is the basically a mixture of amphetamines.

                The journal I found talks about the cardiovascular risk that come with taking Adderall.  In February 2005 the use of Adderall was suspended in Canada after there were 20 global cases of cardiac death or strokes. What made these cases even more alarming was that 14 of the cases were children who had been prescribed Adderall.  In some of the reports it was concluded that some people had toxic levels of mixed amphetamines salts, family history of ventricular arrhythmia, were in strenuous exercise, or were dehydrated. Basically these things played a great role along with Adderall in their cases.

                Studies in Canada later concluded that Adderall did totally cause all these cases, it was the actions or conditions the person was in while they were on Adderall. If anything Adderall only increased the risk of sudden cardiac death or stroke. In August 2005 the ban was lifted and Adderall was returned to shelves, just with a different label stressing the potential side effects.

                Overall I found this journal very eye opening. I knew about Adderall but I never had heard of these side effects. I think that if more people knew of the side effects, the use may not be so high. Because being dehydrated or doing strenuous activity is something I believe college Adderall users can be guilty of.  

Sichilima, T., & Rieder, M.J (2009). Adderall and Cardiovascular risk: A therapeutic dilemma. Paediatrics & Child Health, 14(3), 193-195

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2690554/pdf/pch14193.pdf

Greselda Blanco: Cocaine Cowgirl

Throughout this class I have learned much,  from all the things I have learned from this class, one thing really stood out to me. That one thing being the documentary we watched called “Cocaine Cowboys”. In the documentary there were numerous characters that I had never heard of, but one of them I found fascinating. That was Greselda Blanco, the so called cocaine queen, cocaine cowgirl, or the Godmother of Medellin.

                In the 1970’s into the 80’s Blanco was one of the biggest figures in the Colombian to Miami cocaine drug trade. She smartly started in the trade by having women sew secret compartments in their underwear to transport drugs. She helped to establish smuggling routes and distribution routes, some of these routes would be used for over 20 years after she was arrested. What I found most interesting about her was the way she ran her drug trade. Another interesting fact I found within the article was the fact that she involved her sons in the drug trade, from a young age. She was very over protective over sons, and if she felt that you slighted them or disrespected them she would have you killed.

                The main reason why I founded her extremely interesting was the fact that she was a women, and dominated in traditionally male dominated field. The article mentioned how she was often overlooked by authorities because she was a women. This in one aspect led to her immense power and dominance. It was said that case agents found it difficult “to convince superiors that she was a big deal”. Overall this article gave me great insight into Greselda Blanco aka the cocaine cowgirl. She did many things that at the time weren't expected at all by women and she did it dominantly.

Smith, J. (2014). Cocaine Cowgirl: The Outrageous Life and Mysterious Death of Griselda Blanco, The Godmother of Medellin. Trends in Organized Crime, 17(1-2), 132-134. Retrieved October 27, 2014, from http://download.springer.com.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/static/pdf/788/art%3A10.1007%2Fs12117-014-9220-1.pdf?auth66=1414717713_d6f31c4017a5aca33a293333cefd0649&ext=.pdf