VetSRev
Database of veterinary systematic reviews
Database of veterinary systematic reviews
Int Rev Psychiatry (2018) 30: 107–116
DOI: 10.1080/09540261.2018.1514295
There are several biological factors that might play a role in physiological response to opioids and/or the onset of problematic opioid use; however, sex-based differences in non-analgesic opioid-based effects are poorly understood. The goal of this review is to provide a current analysis of the pre-clinical literature on sex-based differences in response to endogenous and exogenous opioids, including the interplay between sex hormones and opioid receptor-mediated neuronal activity and associated behaviours. A systematic search was performed on the following terms within PubMed between March and April 2018: ’opioid oestrogen’, ’opioid progesterone’, ’opioid oestradiol’, and ’opioid testosterone’. Pre-clinical research on the non-analgesic, sex-based effects of opioids is disparate, both in terms of methodology and outcomes, which prohibits a cohesive summary of the results. Themes from the pre-clinical literature suggest that opioid receptor binding, coupling, and density vary as a function of hormone exposure. Findings also suggest that interactions between endogenous opioid and stress systems may differ between males and females as a function of ovarian hormones. Given the current opioid-related public health crisis, there is a pressing need to increase systematic pre-clinical and clinical research on sex-based differences in opioid-effects and opioid use disorder.
Huhn, A. S., Berry, M. S., & Dunn, K. E. (2018). Systematic review of sex-based differences in opioid-based effects. Int Rev Psychiatry, 30(5), 107–116. https://doi.org/10.1080/09540261.2018.1514295 Animals, Humans, Models, Animal, *Sex Characteristics, *androgen, *oestrogen, *Opioid, *sex, *treatment, Analgesics, Opioid/*metabolism/pharmacokinetics/pharmacology, Gonadal Steroid Hormones/*physiology, Receptors, Opioid/*agonists