Hep c and kratom

[Geoff32]

I started 3mo treatment of Epclusa today. I take kratom daily to help keep me from going back to heroin. Has anyone ever here ever don’t this treatment while on kratom? What were results. Scared to tell doctor for fear of discontinued treatment

[Lynn K]

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/kratom/dangers

High-dose use for a long time leads to liver damage and kidney failure. ... Kratom specifically harms the liver, but when the organ is less able to process toxins, those toxins are then filtered out by the kidneys; the kidneys are not used to this work, and that can lead to kidney failure among people with liver damage.

[Mugwump]

I just kicked cigars ...again.  So my hopes are that you can rid yourself of HCV as many of us here have. AND eventually rid yourself of the need for heroine and a substitute.
This is a big read but seems to be the best source on the dangers of kratom. From what I see the greatest dangers of toxicity to the liver are from poor controls on the drug extraction and the tendency for dealers to mix their shit with other stuff.


Fly by night drug companies that pawn themselves off as "herbalists" are to be very carefully examined because they have run amok and some of the claims and products are down right fraudulent and dangerous. Almost as bad as the tobacco industry was paying doctors to claim that smoking filter cigs is good for you. LOL


So all I have to say is watch your source of this drug very carefully the way you would with street heroine that is cut with other crap that is even stronger. And for heavens sake do not go back to injections PERIOD. We do understand your situation and know that you can kick it especially when you free your mind from the worry about being infected with HCV!


Here is the best info I can find on the three "k"s
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4849036/


This is the section with the specific information on why krantom can be dangerous to the liver and when and why it seems to become so. Needless to say the drug itself is addictive if abused it is like a speed ball. Which oddly enough is the same but opposite effect of tobacco which is a depressant at first and then becomes a stimulant and is why they are both highly addictive.

"The leaves of M. speciosa (Mitragyna speciosa) can be chewed fresh or dried, smoked or infused like an herbal tea with sugar or honey to reduce its typical bitter taste [32]. The natives of the Southeast Asian regions consumed the leaves and the smaller stems, both for their coca-like stimulant ability [39]; when consumed at low doses (approximately 1–5 g of fresh leaves), to combat fatigue and to improve working endurance under the blazing sun; and as an opium substitute [40], for their morphine-like effect at high doses (approximately 5–15 g of fresh material) [37], in cases of opium addiction [41] and for the self-treatment of withdrawal symptoms. If taken at very high doses (>15 g), kratom causes the onset of a sedating status with hypnotic effects and stupor experiences, similar to those caused by opioid consumption [42]. The first reports of kratom use for the treatment of opium addiction date back to 1836, as reported by Burkill [43], and the method of preparation for its consumption was first described by Wray in 1907 [44]. Kratom preparations are also taken in Thailand and Malaysia for medical use in cases of chronic musculoskeletal pain, enteritis, worm infections [45], cough, diabetes and hypertension [32]. Benefits reported are also connected to its analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic effects. Currently, the use of kratom for recreational purposes has widely spread in Europe and in the US because it is easy to purchase on the Internet [46] and also because it is not a controlled drug, making it a “legal high” in many countries [32]. M. speciosa, as reported by several authors, can also be used as a component of herbal preparations, as in the case of “Krypton”, a mixture containing powdered kratom, caffeine and O-desmethyltramadol [47], which caused the death of nine subjects in Sweden in a short period of time [48,49]. Recently, in the southernmost provinces of Thailand, the consumption of a cocktail called “4 × 100”, containing three basic components: M. speciosa leaves, caffeine (from cola drink), codeine (an antitussive) or diphenhydramine (an antihistamine), to which is added a fourth ingredient chosen among antidepressants, anxiolytics or analgesics (paracetamol or tramadol) agents, has caused several deaths among young Muslims, who drink it for its effects similar to those produced by drinking alcohol, which is forbidden in their religion [50]. Because of its ability to produce alterations to the state of consciousness, mitragynine, the main alkaloid compound present in kratom, and its derivative 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-HMG), are controlled drugs in several countries, such as Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, Romania, Poland, Sweden etc. [51]. Furthermore, kratom is illegal in Australia, Malaysia, Burma and Thailand, while in New Zealand M. speciosa and mitragynine, are included in the Medicines Amendment Regulations Act. South Korea, Germany and Israel have also enacted new regulations in controlling kratom and its constituents [37,52]. Instead, in the US, kratom is not scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act, but in 2010, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) included it in the Drugs and Chemicals of Concern list, because kratom is not considered a legitimate remedy for any medical purpose [32,37,42]. Although kratom seems to be safe when administered at 1–10 mg/kg doses (which represents a sub-chronic dose), after prolonged exposure to a 100 mg/kg dose, as demonstrated in the experiments on Sprague-Dawley rats conducted by Sabetghadam et al. [53], it causes biochemical and hematological changes with histopathological alterations in several tissues (liver, kidney and brain). In the same paper, the authors reported that kratom users consume about 67.5–75 mg of kratom per day and that no adverse effects were shown while only after prolonged exposure to a higher dose of kratom, clinical signs of toxicity were highlighted [41]. Only a few papers [54] report liver damages or hepatotoxic sequelae related to kratom use, and also in these cases, the authors highlighted the difficulties of a correlation between kratom consumption and hepatic injuries, which was more likely to be associated with the extraction process of the alkaloids or to the presence of contaminants in the herbal products [52]. Moreover, causality has not yet been accurately established for kratom, as CIOMS scale (RUCAM) has not been applied to suspected cases. Further information is available in the drug user web fora [55]; although these are not official sources, they could represent an incentive for researchers to enhance their knowledge of its metabolism and its adverse effects in humans."

[Lynn K]

Would it be possible for you to get on a Methadone program?

[Geoff32]

Methadone is the last thing I want to try and kick. Withdrawal can last for over a month. Just trying to make it through treatment before I make any sudden changes that will make me sick

Would it be possible for you to get on a Methadone program?

[Mugwump]

Methadone is the last thing I want to try and kick. Withdrawal can last for over a month. Just trying to make it through treatment before I make any sudden changes that will make me sick

If you find that there are difficulties and little things that occur during treatment they can very easily become exaggerated even if you are on other drugs to appease any kind of addiction. I was still fully addicted to nicotine during my Harvoni treatment. I know that if I had stopped during treatment I would have experienced mild DTs for a week or so until the nicotine was out my body. So I did not stop during treatment.
However I did make sure that I occupied my time with things other than smoking. During treatment treat yourself to doing things other than your addiction. Whatever activity it may be. For me it was fishing, studying classical guitar, writing, creating new dishes. ANYTHING but dwelling upon my state of health or my addiction to nicotine.


I truly wish you the best in getting through your treatment as smoothly as possible. Take care of your diet, exercise and hydration as well as your mind and spirit and you will do just fine I am sure.


Eric

[Geoff32]

Thanks man. Just gotta stick with it and power through

[KimInTheForest]

Right on, Geoff! You do what ya gotta do! Good luck to you. Can't solve everything at once. But you are in the process of solving the Hep C issue - and that's a biggie!

kim

Thanks man. Just gotta stick with it and power through

[jeremy4NZ]

When I've had almost the same issues, I've been consuming Maeng Da Red Vein kratom leaves, which were helping me in getting rid of that pain. When I've been trying Kratom for the first time, I've ordered it here ( https://kratomhelper.com/ ), because I knew that I have to try the original stuff, and they can provide it. They have pretty qualified goods for relaxation.