Heroin News and Research

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Heroin is a very addictive chemical called diacetylmorphine. Heroin is a modified form of morphine, a highly abundant opium derived from the seedpods of the poppy plant.

Naloxone can save lives but stigma is preventing its use among newly abstinent opioid users

Opioids are the main driver of fatal drug overdoses in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, resulting in 46,802 deaths in 2018, usually because the person stops breathing.

26 Mar 2021

Study highlights the importance of social connections in preventing opioid misuse

As opioid use disorders and overdoses continue to skyrocket in the United States, a study by researchers from Syracuse University and Pennsylvania State University shows that unmarried young adults who do not have children are mostly likely to misuse opioids.

24 Mar 2021

Opioid use is linked with other forms of substance misuse, mental health problems

Opioid use has dramatically increased in the 21st century, especially among young adults. A new study from the University of Illinois provides insights on usage patterns among Illinois high school students to help inform prevention and treatment strategies.

19 Mar 2021

Specific neurons release dopamine to regulate pain differently in male and female mice

Males and females, generally speaking, experience and respond to pain differently, but scientists have yet to understand all the brain circuits involved in these differences.

19 Mar 2021

Scientific statement defines the distinctive features of opioid-associated cardiac arrest

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests triggered by opioid overdose are a significant cause of death among adults 25 to 64, according to a scientific statement from the American Heart Association, the nation's largest voluntary health organization focused on heart and brain health for all.

8 Mar 2021

Opioid supply-controlling policies may have unintended consequences, finds study

In response to the increase in opioid overdose deaths in the United States, many states have implemented supply-controlling and harm-reduction policy measures aimed at reducing those deaths.

17 Feb 2021

Experimental vaccine diminishes fatal respiratory effects of synthetic opioids

As the opioid epidemic raged on with an even greater force during COVID-19, the Scripps Research laboratory of chemist Kim Janda, PhD, has been working on new therapeutic interventions that may be able to prevent the bulk of deaths from opioid overdose.

4 Feb 2021