Amantadine as Augmentation in Managing Opioid Withdrawal with Clonidine: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: Withdrawal symptoms are a main reason of continuous use of opioid. This study compares the efficacy of augmentation of amantadine with clonidine in decreasing opioid withdrawal symptoms.

Methods: This double-blind randomized clinical trial was carried out in the detoxification and rehabilitation inpatient ward at Razi Hospital, Tabriz, Iran during 2012.

Hypolipidemic activity of a natural mineral water rich in calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonate in hyperlipidemic adults.

Purpose: This study compared the effects of a mineral water rich in calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, and sulfate and a marketed mineral water with a composition similar to that of urban water on the lipid profile of dyslipidemic adults.

Methods: In a randomized controlled trial, 32 adults received one liter of "rich mineral water" daily for one month, and 37 adults drank the same amount of normal mineral water for the same period. Changes in lipid profiles were compared separately in each studied group at the end of one month.

Impact of caffeine on weight changes due to ketotifen administration.

Purpose: Prescription of ketotifen as an effective antihistamine in asthma and allergic conditions is associated with side effect of weight gain. Caffeine is an agent which increases thermogenesis and improves energy expenditure and also effective in asthma. The aim of current study was to evaluate caffeine impact in reducing weight gain side effect of ketotifen.

Repeated central administration of selegiline attenuated morphine physical dependence in rat.

Background: Long-term exposure to opiates induces physical dependence; however, the neurobiological mechanisms of this phenomenon are not completely clear. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of systemic and intracerebroventricular (icv) administration of selegiline (a selective inhibitor of monoamine oxidase B) on the morphine withdrawal syndrome in rats.

Methods: To this aim, adult male Sprague Dawley rats were selected randomly, and then growing doses of morphine were administered subcutaneously at an interval of 12 h for nine days with the intention of inducing dependency.

The therapeutic effect of adding dextromethorphan to clonidine for reducing symptoms of opioid withdrawal: a randomized clinical trial.

Background. Dextromethorphan is a noncompetitive N-methyl D-aspartate receptor antagonist that is clinically feasible for relieving the opioid withdrawal symptoms. This study compares the efficacy of a combination therapy with dextromethorphan and clonidine to treatment with clonidine alone.

Riluzole prevents morphine-induced apoptosis in rat cerebral cortex.

Neuronal apoptosis has been shown to be associated with the development of tolerance to morphine. In the present study, we investigated the effect of intracerebroventricular (icv) administration of an inhibitor of glutamate release, riluzole, on morphine-induced apoptosis in the rat cerebral cortex. Various groups of rats received either morphine (intraperitoneally, ip) and vehicle (icv) or morphine (ip) and different doses of riluzole (icv) once per day for 8 days.

Intracerebroventricular administration of riluzole prevents morphine-induced apoptosis in the lumbar region of the rat spinal cord.

Opiates are the most effective drugs for pain relief. However, the repeated use of opiates induces tolerance to their analgesic effects. It has been shown that this morphine-induced tolerance is associated with apoptosis in the central nervous system.

Minocycline prevents morphine-induced apoptosis in rat cerebral cortex and lumbar spinal cord: a possible mechanism for attenuating morphine tolerance.

Tolerance to the chronic administration of opioids such as morphine reduces the utility of these drugs in pain management. Despite significant investigation, the precise cellular mechanisms underlying opioid tolerance and dependence remain elusive. It has been indicated that tolerance to the analgesic effect of morphine is associated with apoptosis in the central nervous system.

Central administration of minocycline and riluzole prevents morphine-induced tolerance in rats.

Background: Long-term exposure to opiates induces tolerance to the analgesic effect. The neurobiological mechanism of this phenomenon is not completely clear. In this study, we evaluated the effects of central administration of minocycline (a tetracycline derivative) and riluzole (an antiglutamatergic drug) on morphine-induced tolerance in rats.