Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain

Naltrexone, an opioid receptor (OR) antagonist, at its standard doses, is a United States Federal Drug Administration-approved drug for opioid and alcohol use disorders. However, with the discovery of nonneuropsychiatric effects of OR signaling with low-dose naltrexone, it has found novel applicatio...

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Main Authors: Ashutosh Garg, Khyati Thapliyal, Vivek Pal Singh
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2022-10-01
Series:Indian Journal of Medical Specialities
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/injms.injms_35_22
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author Ashutosh Garg
Khyati Thapliyal
Vivek Pal Singh
author_facet Ashutosh Garg
Khyati Thapliyal
Vivek Pal Singh
author_sort Ashutosh Garg
collection DOAJ
description Naltrexone, an opioid receptor (OR) antagonist, at its standard doses, is a United States Federal Drug Administration-approved drug for opioid and alcohol use disorders. However, with the discovery of nonneuropsychiatric effects of OR signaling with low-dose naltrexone, it has found novel applications in inflammatory, malignant, insulin sensitivity-related, and chronic pain conditions. Lower doses also ameliorate its adverse effects. Its off-label use in the abovementioned situations has proven to be cost-effective against costly immunomodulating and antineoplastic drugs. Its lower cost and miniscule margin of interest have precluded in-depth analysis by the pharmaceutical industry. So far, only animal studies, cell culture studies, and case reports have been conducted, some of which exhibit promising benefits. There is a dearth of much-needed quality trials.
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institution Kabale University
issn 0976-2884
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language English
publishDate 2022-10-01
publisher Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
record_format Article
series Indian Journal of Medical Specialities
spelling doaj-art-2a2eb19eaab74cd9948f1aff4ec0440b2025-08-25T08:38:34ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsIndian Journal of Medical Specialities0976-28840976-28922022-10-0113421121510.4103/injms.injms_35_22Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric DomainAshutosh GargKhyati ThapliyalVivek Pal SinghNaltrexone, an opioid receptor (OR) antagonist, at its standard doses, is a United States Federal Drug Administration-approved drug for opioid and alcohol use disorders. However, with the discovery of nonneuropsychiatric effects of OR signaling with low-dose naltrexone, it has found novel applications in inflammatory, malignant, insulin sensitivity-related, and chronic pain conditions. Lower doses also ameliorate its adverse effects. Its off-label use in the abovementioned situations has proven to be cost-effective against costly immunomodulating and antineoplastic drugs. Its lower cost and miniscule margin of interest have precluded in-depth analysis by the pharmaceutical industry. So far, only animal studies, cell culture studies, and case reports have been conducted, some of which exhibit promising benefits. There is a dearth of much-needed quality trials.https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/injms.injms_35_22alcoholinflammatiovinsulinmalignancyopioid
spellingShingle Ashutosh Garg
Khyati Thapliyal
Vivek Pal Singh
Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain
Indian Journal of Medical Specialities
alcohol
inflammatiov
insulin
malignancy
opioid
title Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain
title_full Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain
title_fullStr Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain
title_full_unstemmed Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain
title_short Naltrexone beyond Psychiatric Domain
title_sort naltrexone beyond psychiatric domain
topic alcohol
inflammatiov
insulin
malignancy
opioid
url https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/injms.injms_35_22
work_keys_str_mv AT ashutoshgarg naltrexonebeyondpsychiatricdomain
AT khyatithapliyal naltrexonebeyondpsychiatricdomain
AT vivekpalsingh naltrexonebeyondpsychiatricdomain