Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2025

Color Spot Test As a Presumptive Tool for the Rapid Detection of Synthetic Cathinones
Published on: February 5, 2018
Prescribed and Diverted Methadone Toxicity in South Australia: An Update
Lilli Stephenson1, Corinna Van Den Heuvel1, Melissa Humphries2
1From the Schools of Biomedicine.
Abstract:
Methadone is one of the most common medications currently prescribed for the treatment of opioid use disorders (OUDs). While methadone maintenance programs (MMPs) have been highly successful in the management and treatment of OUDs resulting in a reduced number of fatalities, the risk of overdose/toxicity remains. The current study was undertaken to analyze trends in overdoses attributed to prescribed and diverted methadone in South Australia (SA) between 2000 and 2019. Over the 20-year period, 344 methadone-related deaths occurred in SA with a significant increase in deaths over the study period ( P = 0.03). The mean age of decedents was 42.5 years with a male to female ratio of 1.8:1, with approximately 20% of decedents enrolled in a MMP at the time of death. Overall, only 5.2% of cases demonstrated methadone diversion, which was associated with methadone prescribed for chronic pain and was most likely to be diverted from a friend/housemate or a partner. However, the source of methadone in more than half of cases was unknown, so this is likely a significant underestimate of actual MMP methadone diversion and total methadone diversion.
More Related Videos
10:17High-throughput and Comprehensive Drug Surveillance Using Multisegment Injection-Capillary Electrophoresis-Mass Spectrometry
Published on: April 23, 2019
09:16A General Method for Evaluating Deep Brain Stimulation Effects on Intravenous Methamphetamine Self-Administration
Published on: January 22, 2016
Related Concept Videos
Enhanced Elimination of Poison
Antidotes serve a crucial role in counteracting the effects of poison by inhibiting enzymes responsible for producing harmful drug metabolites. In some cases, these toxic metabolites can be neutralized by endogenous cosubstrates, which are maintained at specific concentrations to prevent interaction with cellular macromolecules and subsequent cell death.
Renal excretion is the...
Phase II Reactions: Methylation Reactions
The mechanism of methylation unfolds in two stages. The first stage sees a methyltransferase enzyme facilitating the transfer of a methyl group from S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) to the substrate, forming S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH). The second stage involves further metabolism of SAH into homocysteine, which can be recycled...
Drug Abuse and Addiction: Pharmacological Phenomena
Desensitization and Tachyphylaxis
Anticholinesterase Agents: Poisoning and Treatment
Irreversible agents form a strong bond with the cholinesterase enzyme, making it inactive. The breakdown of the phosphorylated enzyme is...
Prevention of Further Absorption of Poison