Heroin (Print Version)

Also called: Also called: H, Junk, Skag, Smack

Heroin is a drug made from morphine, a natural substance in the seedpod of the Asian poppy plant. Heroin usually appears as a white or brown powder. Heroin can be injected, smoked or snorted. Heroin abuse is a serious problem in the United States. Major health problems from heroin include miscarriages, heart infections and death from overdose. People who inject the drug also risk infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS and hepatitis.

Regular use of heroin can lead to tolerance. This means users need more and more drug to have the same effect. At higher doses over time, the body becomes dependent on heroin. If dependent users stop heroin, they have withdrawal symptoms. These symptoms include restlessness, muscle and bone pain, diarrhea, vomiting and cold flashes.

National Institute on Drug Abuse

Start Here

Heroin(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/heroin.html
Also available in Spanish http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/Heroin-Sp.html

Overviews

Heroin(Office of National Drug Control Policy) - http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/drugfact/heroin/index.html
Heroin Abuse and Addiction(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://www.nida.nih.gov/ResearchReports/Heroin/Heroin.html
Also available in Spanish http://www.nida.nih.gov/ResearchReports/Heroina/Heroina.html

Treatment

Treatment Approaches for Drug Addiction(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/TreatMeth.html
Also available in Spanish http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/Metodos-Sp.html
What Is Substance Abuse Treatment? A Booklet for Families(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - Large PDF file - http://www.kap.samhsa.gov/products/brochures/pdfs/WhatIsTx.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://kap.samhsa.gov/mli/docs/spanish/WhatIsTx-Spanish.pdf

Games

Sara's Quest(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://teens.drugabuse.gov/sarasquest/index.asp

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Heroin Dependence(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Heroin+Dependence%22
ClinicalTrials.gov: Narcotics(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Narcotics%22
ClinicalTrials.gov: Substance-Related Disorders(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Substance-Related+Disorders%22
ClinicalTrials.gov: Methadone(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/intervention=methadone

Research

Depot Naltrexone Appears Safe and Effective for Heroin Addiction(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://www.nida.nih.gov/NIDA_notes/NNvol21N3/depot.html
Interim Methadone Raises Odds of Enrolling in Comprehensive Treatment(National Institute on Drug Abuse) - http://www.nida.nih.gov/NIDA_notes/NNvol21N3/interim.html

Journal Articles

References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Article: Results of the first North American prescription heroin study are... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19294776&tool=MedlinePlus
Article: Inquest begins into deaths after concerns about diamorphine prescribing. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19258360&tool=MedlinePlus
Article: Efficacy of treatment in an opioid -dependent population group using... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19252726&tool=MedlinePlus
Heroin -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=heroin+dependence[majr]+OR+heroin/ae[majr]+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus

Dictionaries/Glossaries

Street Terms: Drugs and the Drug Trade: Heroin(Office of National Drug Control Policy) - http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/streetterms/ByType.asp?intTypeID=5

Directories

Buprenorphine Physician Locator(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://buprenorphine.samhsa.gov/bwns_locator/dr_facilitylocatordoc.htm
Substance Abuse Treatment Facility Locator(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://dasis3.samhsa.gov/

Organizations

Drug Enforcement Administration - http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/
National Institute on Drug Abuse - http://www.nida.nih.gov/
Office of National Drug Control Policy - http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/
Partnership for a Drug-Free America - http://www.drugfree.org/

Statistics

Characteristics of Primary Heroin Injection and Inhalation Admissions: 2002(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k4/heroin/heroin.htm
National Drug Threat Assessment 2005(National Drug Intelligence Center) - http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs11/12620/heroin.htm
Nonmedical Oxycodone Users: A Comparison with Heroin Users(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/2k4/oxycodoneH/oxycodoneH.htm

Children

What You Need to Know About Drugs: Heroin(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/kid/grow/drugs_alcohol/know_drugs_heroin.html

Teenagers

Tips for Teens: The Truth about Heroin(Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) - http://ncadi.samhsa.gov/govpubs/PHD860/

You may also be interested in these MedlinePlus related pages:

Drug Abuse - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/drugabuse.html
Substance Abuse Problems - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/substanceabuseproblems.html

The primary NIH organization for research on Heroin is the National Institute on Drug Abuse - http://www.nida.nih.gov/