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Impact of opioids on the endocrine system - Side effects

The relatively high consumption of opioids, especially for non-medical purposes, is a high matter of concern, because behind the efficient pain management of this kind of drugs there are a lot of negative side effects that can plague users. Among those the most common ones are:

  • Sedation 

  • Dizziness 

  • Nausea 

  • Vomiting 

  • Constipation 

  • Physical dependence

  • Respiratory depression.

However, there are some of the negative effects that are not often mentioned, because erroneously not recognized as opioid-related, but can also severely impair the lifestyle of a person: those related to the endocrine system.

Indeed, opioids can have an impact on the performance of some hormones (especially sex hormones) in long term treatment. In particular, decreased testosterone production in men, with significant loss of libido and other expected effects, and menstrual irregularities and infertility in women are often observed when taking these drugs. One of the reasons behind the lack of recognition of this kind of side-effects could be related to the nature of the side effects itself. Indeed, it can be harder for the patient to report these kinds of symptoms because of embarrassment. However, because of this, the clinician may not be able to draw meaningful conclusions from the hormonal parameters.

Other observable phenomena could also be: 

  • Infertility 

  • Fatigue 

  • Depression 

  • Anxiety 

  • Loss of muscle strength and mass 

  • Osteoporosis 

  • Compression fractures

However, it is important to mention that all the aforementioned side effects are reversible and mostly dose-dependent. This is why you should not hesitate to talk about it with your doctor!

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