You may have heard of Suboxone® and associate it with opioid addiction. While Suboxone is part of the medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder, it does more than ease drug cravings and withdrawal symptoms. It may also help with pain management.
Our pain and spine specialists — Dr. Ojedapo Ojeyemi and Dr. Matthew Roh — at Orthopedic & Wellness prescribe Suboxone to help manage opioid use disorder and chronic pain. In this blog, we explain how Suboxone works for pain and who can benefit.
This prescription medication is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat opioid use disorder. It’s a sublingual film that dissolves under the tongue, and it contains two active ingredients — buprenorphine and naloxone — that reduce cravings for opioids, ease withdrawal symptoms, and minimize risk of misuse.
Though primarily used to help those struggling with opioid dependence, Suboxone also works for people contending with chronic pain.
Buprenorphine is the active ingredient in Suboxone that helps manage pain. It’s a partial opioid agonist that binds with some of the same receptors as opioids to elicit feelings of euphoria and control pain.
When given at the right dose, buprenorphine may manage pain better than other opioids like morphine. However, unlike opioids, buprenorphine has a ceiling effect. Once you hit the maximum dose, you don’t get any additional benefits from taking more, making it harder to abuse.
Naloxone isn’t a pain medication, but it helps people struggling with opioid use disorder from misusing Suboxone and other opioids. Naloxone is an opioid antagonist that blocks opioid receptors.
Naloxone remains inactive as long as you take Suboxone as directed. Injecting Suboxone, or any other opioid, activates the naloxone and sends you immediately into withdrawal.
Pain is complex, and no single treatment is right for everyone. Our pain management experts take an individualized approach, customizing treatment plans based on the cause, type, and severity of your pain.
We may recommend Suboxone if you suffer from a chronic pain condition like back pain or neck pain and other treatments aren’t helping or if you have concerns about opioid dependence.
Suboxone also benefits our patients with chronic pain who have become dependent on opioids. It provides the pain relief they need and supports their recovery from dependence or addiction.
Is your pain taking over your life? It’s time to take action. Let us help you develop a pain management plan that puts you back in control of your pain and your life. Call Orthopedic & Wellness in Frederick, Waldorf, and Germantown, Maryland, or book a consultation online today.
