Modeling Insights into Potential Mechanisms of Opioid-Induced Respiratory Depression within Medullary and Pontine Networks.

The opioid epidemic is a pervasive health issue and continues to have a drastic impact on the United States. This is primarily because opioids cause respiratory suppression and the leading cause of death in opioid overdose is respiratory failure ( , opioid-induced respiratory depression, OIRD). Opioid administration can affect the frequency and magnitude of inspiratory motor drive by activating µ-opioid receptors that are located throughout the respiratory control network in the brainstem.

Peripheral antitussives affect temporal features of tracheobronchial coughing in cats.

The influence of peripheral antitussive drugs on spatiotemporal features of coughing has not been reported. We hypothesized that this class of compounds would alter the cough motor pattern, in part, by lengthening cough phases. Peripherally acting antitussives, 3-aminopropylphosphinic acid (3APPi, 5 mg/kg) and levodropropizine (Levo, 3 mg/kg) were injected intravenously in anesthetized spontaneously breathing cats (13 males, 2 females; 4.

Amygdalar involvement in respiratory dysfunction.

The brainstem has long been recognized as the major respiratory control center, but it has become increasingly appreciated that areas upstream of the brainstem modulate respiration and airway defensive behaviors. This review aims to define the role of the amygdala, a key temporal brain region essential for limbic function, in respiration and airway defenses. We summarize literature describing roles for the amygdala in control of respiration, swallow, cough, airway smooth muscle contraction, and mucus secretion.

Evidence for peripheral and central actions of codeine to dysregulate swallowing in the anesthetized cat.

Systemic administration of opioids has been associated with aspiration and swallow dysfunction in humans. We speculated that systemic administration of codeine would induce dysfunctional swallowing and that this effect would have a peripheral component. Experiments were conducted in spontaneously breathing, anesthetized cats.