Six decades of natural opiate use in a nonagenarian

Abstract

Elderly natural opiate users are often forced to seek treatment when they cannot avail opioids. We present here a case of a 98-year-old male who came to us with six decades of natural opiate use in the form of raw opium and poppy husk. The patient was managed symptomatically with tramadol and diazepam for about 6 months. The case highlights the long duration of natural opiate use for nearly six decades, its impact and outcome in terms of psychosocial functioning, and the successful management of elderly patients with natural opiate use in outpatient settings.