Pharmacologic Substance
heroin
her·o·in [ her-oh-in ]
Definitions related to heroin:
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A narcotic analgesic that may be habit-forming. It is a controlled substance (opium derivative) listed in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21 Parts 329.1, 1308.11 (1987). Sale is forbidden in the United States by Federal statute. (Merck Index, 11th ed)NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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A substance made from morphine. Heroin is very addictive and it is illegal to use or sell it in the United States. It is a type of opiate.NCI Dictionary of Cancer TermsU.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
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Heroin is a white or brown powder or a black, sticky goo. It's an opioid drug made from morphine, a natural substance in the seedpod of the Asian poppy plant. It can be mixed with water and injected with a needle. Heroin can also be smoked or snorted up the nose. All of these ways of taking heroin send it to the brain very quickly. This makes it very addictive. Major health problems from heroin include miscarriages, heart infections, and death from overdose. People who inject the drug also risk getting 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 and vomiting, and cold flashes with goose bumps. NIH: National Institute on Drug AbuseMedlinePlusU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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Narcotic analgesic drug prepared from morphine, now prohibited in the United States even for medicinal uses because of the danger of addiction.CRISP ThesaurusNational Institutes of Health, 2006
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Heroin, highly addictive morphine derivative that makes up a large portion of the illicit traffic in narcotics. Heroin is made by treating morphine with acetic anhydride; the resulting substance is four to eight times as potent as morphine. (Morphine is an alkaloid found in opium, which is the...Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2020
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