Amphetamines: amphetamine addiction
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Amphetamines increase dopaminergic activity, primarily due to stimulation of presynaptic release of dopamine, and not as a result of the blockade of its re-uptake, like cocaine. In some regions of the United States, methamphetamine is most often abused, injected intravenously or by inhalation. It causes amphetamine dependence, which manifests itself in the same way as cocaine dependence. A different clinical picture is observed when using oral stimulants prescribed for weight loss. These drugs reduce appetite, which leads to a short-term weight loss, but their effect is quickly weakened by the development of tolerance. In experiments on rats, it is shown that when the amphetamine is discontinued, ricochetorrhoea increases in appetite, and as a result, the weight exceeds the level before amphetamine administration. Therefore, anorexigens can not be used on their own as an independent method of treating obesity, but they are used as a temporary adjuvant in combination with special behavioral techniques. A small proportion of patients who were prescribed psychostimulants to facilitate weight loss subsequently developed addiction to drugs, expressed in persistent attempts to buy the drug to obtain a stimulating effect. Over time, the condition of these patients begins to meet the criteria of abuse or dependence. Mazindol also reduces appetite, but has a weaker stimulating effect than amphetamine. In contrast, fenfluramine and phenylpropanolamine reduce appetite without any significant risk of developing abuse. Unfortunately, fenfluramine (racemic mixture) and dexfenfluramine caused several tragic cases of primary pulmonary hypertension and pathology of the heart valves. In addition, in the experiment it was shown that fenfluramine leads to a decrease in serotonin granulations in the brains of monkeys, although the significance of this phenomenon for man remains unclear. In 1997, the FDA banned the sale of both drugs due to the risk of serious side effects.
"Hat" is a plant mass that is consumed in East Africa and Yemen: it is chewed to obtain a stimulating effect. "Hat" contains an alkaloid cathinone, which is similar to amphetamine. Recently, methcathinone, a related substance with a similar effect, was synthesized in clandestine laboratories in the Midwest. However, the use of none of these drugs took the same epidemic character as the use of cocaine in the 1980s.
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