Substance Use Disorder News and Research

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Noninvasive brain stimulation restores behavioral flexibility in cocaine-exposed rats

A major impediment to treatment of substance use disorder (SUD) is a loss of behavioral flexibility, whereby one's judgment is impaired such that their actions continuously result in negative consequences.

16 Feb 2021

As demand for mental health care spikes, budget ax set to strike

When the pandemic hit, health officials in Montana's Beaverhead County had barely begun to fill a hole left by the 2017 closure of the local public assistance office, mental health clinic, chemical dependency center and job placement office after the state's last budget shortfall.

5 Feb 2021

Residential treatment facilities are implementing Medicaid, other health coverage

Substance use has been a public health issue in America for decades, costing millions of lives and billions of dollars each year. For many, seeking treatment can be an expensive challenge.

3 Feb 2021

4 vital health issues — not tied to Covid — that Congress addressed in massive spending bill

Late last month, before President Joe Biden took office and proposed his pandemic relief plan, Congress passed a nearly 5,600-page legislative package that provided some pandemic relief along with its more general allocations to fund the government in 2021.

28 Jan 2021

Medicaid expansion helps detect more numbers of undiagnosed HIV infections

The Medicaid expansion facilitated by the Affordable Care Act led to increases in the identification of undiagnosed HIV infections and in the use of HIV prevention services such as preexposure prophylaxis drugs, says new research co-written by a team of University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign experts who study the intersection of health care and public policy.

27 Jan 2021

Experts release newly-established principles of care for young adults with substance use disorder

A national group of pediatric addiction medicine experts have released newly-established principles of care for young adults with substance use disorder.

16 Jan 2021

Study finds sex and age-based differences among youth who experience nonfatal opioid overdose

Results of a national study show significant sex and age-based differences among youth and young adults who experience a nonfatal opioid overdose.

22 Dec 2020

New report offers recommendations to address opioid epidemic during COVID-19 pandemic

A new report from researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health offers recommendations aimed at federal, state, and local policymakers to address the opioid epidemic during the pandemic, which has seen sharp increases in fatal and nonfatal overdoses.

21 Dec 2020

Depressed children, teenagers have higher risk of premature death and wide range of diseases

Depressed children and teenagers have an increased risk of suffering from premature death and a wide range of illnesses later in life.

9 Dec 2020

OHIO professor's new study focuses on strategies hospitals adopt to address the opioid epidemic

While the world's attention to public health remains focused on COVID-19, Berkeley Franz, Ph.D., assistant professor at the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, continues to focus her attention on one of the largest public health crises in the United States today - the opioid epidemic.

16 Nov 2020

Researchers estimate prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among adults in orange county

Testing a representative sample of Orange County residents for a wide range of coronavirus antibodies, University of California, Irvine researchers found that 11.5 percent of them have antibodies for COVID-19, in contrast to previous estimates of less than 2 percent.

29 Oct 2020

Cocaine use in mice leads to the formation of synapses by astrocytes

Drugs of abuse, like cocaine, are so addictive due in part to their cellular interaction, creating strong cellular memories in the brain that promote compulsive behaviors.

15 Oct 2020

Researchers receive $1.35 million grant to reduce impact of substance abuse in Appalachia

McDowell County--in the southern coalfields of West Virginia--is the second-most at-risk in the nation for an HIV outbreak related to drug injection. Neighboring Wyoming and Mercer Counties follow close behind. All three have some of the highest rates of acute hepatitis B and hepatitis C in the United States.

14 Oct 2020

Dopamine and serotonin play role in perception and decision-making

Scientists at Wake Forest School of Medicine have recorded real time changes in dopamine and serotonin levels in the human brain that are involved with perception and decision-making.

12 Oct 2020

Study provides the most detailed picture on stimulant use by LGB individuals

Lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) individuals report higher rates of medical, non-medical, and illegal stimulant use compared to heterosexuals, mirroring patterns seen in other substance use.

24 Sep 2020

Scientists investigate how psychedelic drugs interact with brain cells at the molecular level

Psychedelic drugs such as LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline cause severe and often long-lasting hallucinations, but they show great potential in treating serious psychiatric conditions, such as major depressive disorder.

18 Sep 2020

UTEP's MARC receives federal grant to fight opioid abuse in West Texas rural counties

The University of Texas at El Paso's Minority AIDS Research Center (MARC) is the subrecipient of a $1 million implementation grant to target substance use disorders and opioid use disorders in five rural counties along the Texas-Mexico border.

16 Sep 2020

HIV and HCV testing at drug detoxification centers can help identify persons at-risk during opioid epidemic

With an increase in HIV and HCV infections as a consequence of the ongoing opioid epidemic, Boston Medical Center researchers found that only a small number of those who test positive for those infections at a drug detoxification center followed up for a clinical visit after their test.

3 Sep 2020

Clinicians may have to look beyond opioids to tackle nation’s substance use epidemic

Overcoming the nation's opioid epidemic will require clinicians to look beyond opioids, new research from Oregon Health & Science University suggests.

28 Aug 2020

Online health technology can close the gap on racial disparities

New research from Boston Medical Center highlights the benefits of using health technology to engage African American and Black women earlier in preconception care in an effort to close the gap on racial disparities in birth outcomes and maternal mortality.

26 Aug 2020