Opioid Dependence News and Research

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WHO survey: COVID-19 halted mental health services in 93% of countries

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted or halted critical mental health services in 93% of countries worldwide while the demand for mental health is increasing, according to a new WHO survey.

5 Oct 2020

New guidelines reduce number of opioid pills prescribed to patients after surgery

To address the opioid epidemic, surgeons have embraced guidelines to reduce the number of opioid pills they prescribe to patients after surgery, and the efforts have helped to significantly reduce the number of opioids in circulation.

5 Oct 2020

Opioid use in women trying to conceive linked with lower chance of pregnancy

Opioid use among women trying to conceive may be associated with a lower chance of pregnancy, suggests a National Institutes of Health study. Moreover, opioid use in early pregnancy may be associated with a greater chance of pregnancy loss.

18 Aug 2020

Behavior therapy that exposes people to traumatic memories does not trigger drug relapse

About a quarter of people with drug or alcohol use disorders also suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is typically caused by a traumatic or stressful life event such as rape or combat, and which leaves the person with intense anxiety.

20 Jul 2020

Study: Workplace strategies can promote employment for drug addicts

After a yearlong study of people with opioid dependence, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers report evidence that adding $8 an hour to their paychecks may help those in recovery stay drug free longer, as well as encourage them to get and hold regular jobs.

20 Apr 2020

Addiction is ‘a disease of isolation’ — so pandemic puts recovery at risk

Before the coronavirus became a pandemic, Emma went to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting every week in the Boston area and to another support group at her methadone clinic. She said she felt safe, secure and never judged.

30 Mar 2020

Study finds higher risk of poisoning at the beginning and after end of methadone treatment

A new study, led by RCSI researchers, has found that patients receiving methadone treatment are most at risk of overdosing in the month following the end of methadone treatment and during the first four weeks of treatment.

20 Feb 2020

No quick fix: Missouri finds managing pain without opioids isn’t fast or easy

Missouri began offering chiropractic care, acupuncture, physical therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy for Medicaid patients in April, the latest state to try an alternative to opioids for those battling chronic pain.

13 Feb 2020

Higher opioid doses do not seem to improve pain, study finds

Increasing chronic pain patients' opioid prescription doses does not seem to improve pain, according to a Veterans Affairs study.

5 Feb 2020

Opioid dependence produces permanent changes in the brains of rats

Approximately one-quarter of patients who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain misuse them, with five to 10 percent developing an opioid use disorder or addiction.

24 Jan 2020

Changing the underlying structure and culture of a clinic to address opioid epidemic

For the 20 percent of Americans who suffer from chronic pain, prescription opioids may bring relief, but also risks. An estimated 21 to 29 percent of patients who receive chronic opioid treatment will misuse their medications, and 8 to 12 percent will develop an opioid use disorder.

8 Jan 2020

Scaling up use of opioid agonist therapies could help combat Ukraine’s HIV epidemic

A new study led by Yale University researchers finds that scaling up use of methadone and buprenorphine -- medications for treating opioid use disorder known as opioid agonist therapies (OATs) -- could greatly reduce HIV transmission rates and prevent deaths in Ukraine, where the disease is epidemic among people who inject drugs.

3 Jan 2020

Risk of opioid overdose rises after de-addiction treatment completion

A study from Columbia University reveals that patients, who have been successfully treated with buprenorphine for opioid addiction, are at a greater risk of overdose after completion of the treatment. The study was titled, “Acute care, prescription opioid use, and overdose following discontinuation of long-term buprenorphine treatment for opioid use disorder”, and was published in the latest issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry. This study was funded and supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

2 Dec 2019

Predicting opioid-related problems among cancer survivors

Opioids play an important role in how cancer patients manage pain, but the ongoing opioid epidemic has raised concerns about their potential for abuse.

22 Nov 2019

CU Anschutz to train students to prescribe buprenorphine products for opioid use disorder

As the nation struggles with a persistent epidemic of opioid addiction, the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus is taking a critical step that will allow its graduates to better treat patients and save lives.

21 Nov 2019

Opioid-free pain management guidelines released by Pitt Dental Medicine

The University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine is the first in the nation to establish opioid-free pain management guidelines for the vast majority of procedures performed in all of its clinics.

14 Nov 2019

TACC announces role as key collaborator in NIH grant to study chronic pain and opioid dependence

Pain impacts nearly every individual at some point in their lives. With more than 25 million adults in the U.S. experiencing daily pain, the U.S. is facing a crisis due to the high prevalence of chronic pain and associated opioid use disorder and overdose deaths.

14 Nov 2019

VA evaluates the effect of opioids, sedatives on veterans

Veterans who simultaneously take opioids for chronic pain and benzodiazepines for anxiety and insomnia are at an increased risk of unintentional overdose and death as well as suicide.

6 Nov 2019

Pioneering brain chip to fight opioid addiction: first US clinical test

Opioid addiction is among the biggest medical conditions troubling the U.S. today, and is far from reaching a solution. In 2017, it claimed almost 50 deaths per 100,000 in the state of West Virginia – the highest drug-overdose-related death rate in the US. Today, however, there is a gleam of hope from a new trial of an old technology to help fight this battle – a brain-embedded chip to counter opioid-induced cravings in treatment-refractory patients.

6 Nov 2019

Mindfulness and medication for opioid dependence may reduce cravings

People suffering from opioid addiction and chronic pain may have fewer cravings and less pain if they use both mindfulness techniques and medication for opioid dependence, according to Rutgers and other researchers.

14 Oct 2019