Heroin [Diacetylmorphine] [Diamorphine]

This chapter describes trade name, classification, approved indications for psychological disorders, available dosage forms, storage, and compatibility, usual dosage and administration, relative contraindications, and clinically significant drug interactions of Heroin [Diacetylmorphine] [Diamorphine]. Heroin elicits its analgesic and CNS and respiratory depressant actions primarily by binding to the endorphin receptors in the CNS. Neonates born to women who have received heroin pharmacotherapy, or have regularly used heroin, during their pregnancies, especially near term, will display the opiate withdrawal syndrome. Avoid prescribing heroin pharmacotherapy to women who are pregnant. Heroin pharmacotherapy commonly has been associated with constipation and other GI complaints, including nausea and vomiting. The duration of action of heroin may exceed that of naloxone. Therefore, repeated doses of naloxone may be required during the course of emergency medical management of heroin overdosage. Concurrent heroin pharmacotherapy with other opiate analgesics, sedative-hypnotics, or other drugs that produce CNS depression may result in additive CNS depression.