A 34-year-old guy visits the office to have his opioid use disorder assessed. In his mid-20s, oxycodone was prescribed for a sports-related injury. He became dependent on medication and started injecting heroin to replace it. The patient has experienced many overdoses in the last few years that have necessitated the use of naloxone. He recently attempted to stop using heroin on his own, but kept relapsing. He has been abstaining for two days, yet he still has intense desires. The patient is given a prescription for buprenorphine after a review of alternative treatment options. Below is an illustration of this medication's dose-response curve: Which of the following clinical pharmacologic effects of buprenorphine is most likely?

Question

A 34-year-old guy visits the office to have his opioid use disorder assessed. In his mid-20s, oxycodone was prescribed for a sports-related injury. He became dependent on medication and started injecting heroin to replace it. The patient has experienced many overdoses in the last few years that have necessitated the use of naloxone. He recently attempted to stop using heroin on his own, but kept relapsing. He has been abstaining for two days, yet he still has intense desires. The patient is given a prescription for buprenorphine after a review of alternative treatment options. Below is an illustration of this medication's dose-response curve:  Which of the following clinical pharmacologic effects of buprenorphine is most likely?

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Eductional Objective: A semi-synthetic opioid with therapeutic ceiling due to mixed/partial agonist-antagonist action is buprenorphine. This lessens the possibility of dose-dependent side effects such respiratory depression in comparison to complete opioid agonists.

A 34-Year-Old Guy Visits the Office to Have His Opioid