Opioids News and Research

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An opioid is a chemical that works by binding to opioid receptors, which are found principally in the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract. The receptors in these two organ systems mediate both the beneficial effects and the side effects of opioids.

Horse sedative use among humans spreads in deadly mixture of ‘tranq’ and fentanyl

Andrew McClave Jr. loved to lift weights. The 6-foot-4-inch bartender resembled a bodybuilder and once posed for a photo flexing his muscles with former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan.

26 Feb 2024

‘Fourth wave’ of opioid epidemic crashes ashore, propelled by fentanyl and meth

The United States is knee-deep in what some experts call the opioid epidemic's "fourth wave," which is not only placing drug users at greater risk but is also complicating efforts to address the nation's drug problem.

21 Feb 2024

California prison drug overdoses surge again after early treatment success

Drug overdose deaths in California state prisons rebounded to near record levels last year even as corrections officials touted the state's intervention methods as a model for prisons and jails across the United States.

14 Feb 2024

Pain screening could improve care for youth with sickle cell disease

A recent study from researchers at University Hospitals (UH) Connor Whole Health and UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital describes a quality improvement project where pain screening procedures were embedded within an outpatient pediatric sickle cell disease (SCD) clinic.

13 Feb 2024

Reducing unnecessary testing or treatments in older patients

When a doctor ordered a routine prostate screening for an 80-year-old man -; as doctors often do -; a dramatic yellow alert popped up on the electronic health record with dire warnings.

7 Feb 2024

New guidelines set safer standards for dental pain relief

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) taken alone or along with acetaminophen are recommended as first-line treatments for managing short-term dental pain in adults and adolescents aged 12 or older, according to a new clinical practice guideline developed by the American Dental Association (ADA), the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine and the Center for Integrative Global Oral Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine.

6 Feb 2024

Researchers discover non-opioid therapeutic for relieving neuropathic pain

Among the most difficult types of pain to alleviate is neuropathic pain, pain that is usually caused by damage to nerves in various body tissues, including skin, muscle and joints.

31 Jan 2024

Pitt secures $7.8 million grant to improve quality of care for patients with opioid use disorder

The University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy's Program Evaluation and Research Unit (PERU) has received a five-year, $7.8 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to improve quality of care for patients with opioid use disorder across Pennsylvania.

30 Jan 2024

Records show Publix opioid sales grew even as addiction crisis prompted other chains’ pullback

An executive at Teva Pharmaceuticals flagged Publix Super Markets in October 2015 after detecting what he called in an email "serious red flags" with the grocery chain's orders of powerful opioids.

29 Jan 2024

Federal lawmakers take first steps toward oversight of $50 billion in opioid settlements

Some members of Congress are demanding federal oversight of billions of dollars in opioid settlements, which state and local governments began spending over the past two years — with some using it to plug budget holes rather than fight the addiction crisis.

22 Jan 2024

Using AI to break the opioid addiction cycle

When Ben Brown, research assistant professor of chemistry, thinks about the opioid epidemic, he views the problem on a molecular level.

19 Jan 2024

Tailored opioid prescribing limits more effective at reducing prescription length, study finds

Many states have passed new laws that place restrictions on the duration of first-time opioid prescriptions to help address the opioid epidemic.

19 Jan 2024

What is the association between prenatal opioid exposure and risk of immune-related conditions?

Researchers compared the risk of hospitalization and emergency department presentation for immune-related conditions in children with and without prenatal opioid exposure.

19 Jan 2024

Michigan disbands racial equity group as tension mounts over opioid settlement money

An advisory group formed to help Michigan tackle high rates of opioid overdoses in communities of color has been disbanded by Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's administration, leading to hard feelings among some members who say their work is being buried.

19 Jan 2024

Morphine shows potential as effective cough therapy for pulmonary fibrosis, study finds

The efficacy of the controlled release of low-dose morphine as treatment against that of a placebo in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

18 Jan 2024

Planning prompts show promise in improving prescribing safety

Physicians who are notified that a patient has died of a drug overdose are more judicious in issuing controlled substances if the notification includes a plan for what to do during subsequent patient visits, according to a study published today in Nature Communications.

13 Jan 2024

FDA-approved drug may help to decrease pain after surgery, study finds

Researchers in the Department of Anesthesia and Perioperative Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) have found that an FDA-approved drug may help to decrease pain after surgery.

12 Jan 2024

Study reports a prominent increase in substance use and cardiovascular disease‐related mortality in the United States between 1999 and 2019

Researchers evaluated trends in substance use and cardiovascular disease-related mortality in the United States using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

12 Jan 2024

Cardiovascular disease deaths tied to substance use jump 4% per year from 1999 to 2019

Cardiovascular disease deaths involving substance use rose an average of 4% per year from 1999 to 2019, despite a drop in overall cardiovascular disease deaths, according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.

10 Jan 2024

E-cigarettes more effective for smoking cessation than conventional nicotine-replacement therapy

Nicotine e-cigarettes are more effective in helping people quit smoking than conventional nicotine-replacement therapy (NRT), according to the latest Cochrane review co-led by a University of Massachusetts Amherst public health and health policy researcher.

8 Jan 2024

Opioids News and Research

Further Reading

Horse sedative use among humans spreads in deadly mixture of ‘tranq’ and fentanyl

‘Fourth wave’ of opioid epidemic crashes ashore, propelled by fentanyl and meth

California prison drug overdoses surge again after early treatment success

Pain screening could improve care for youth with sickle cell disease

Reducing unnecessary testing or treatments in older patients

New guidelines set safer standards for dental pain relief

Researchers discover non-opioid therapeutic for relieving neuropathic pain

Pitt secures $7.8 million grant to improve quality of care for patients with opioid use disorder

Records show Publix opioid sales grew even as addiction crisis prompted other chains’ pullback

Federal lawmakers take first steps toward oversight of $50 billion in opioid settlements

Using AI to break the opioid addiction cycle

Tailored opioid prescribing limits more effective at reducing prescription length, study finds

What is the association between prenatal opioid exposure and risk of immune-related conditions?

Michigan disbands racial equity group as tension mounts over opioid settlement money

Morphine shows potential as effective cough therapy for pulmonary fibrosis, study finds

Planning prompts show promise in improving prescribing safety

FDA-approved drug may help to decrease pain after surgery, study finds

Study reports a prominent increase in substance use and cardiovascular disease‐related mortality in the United States between 1999 and 2019

Cardiovascular disease deaths tied to substance use jump 4% per year from 1999 to 2019

E-cigarettes more effective for smoking cessation than conventional nicotine-replacement therapy

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