Opioid Drug News and Research

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Frequent and public opioid users may be best candidates for naloxone training

In response to America's opioid crisis, public health departments and community organizations across the country have started to train opioid users to reverse overdoses in other users with the opioid-blocker naloxone.

26 Mar 2018

Opioid maker funds efforts to fight addiction: Is it ‘blood money’ or charity?

A program to give naloxone overdose-antidote kits and training to front-line officers. Funding for pill disposal boxes in pharmacies, clinics and police stations across North Carolina. A radio campaign in Connecticut warning of the dangers of opioid abuse. A new medicine to treat opioid-induced constipation.

14 Mar 2018

Suicidal ideations, attempts linked to opioid use and pain sensitivity in elderly

A new study published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics suggests that suicidal ideations and suicide attempts are linked to opioid use and pain sensitivity in the elderly.

2 Jan 2018

Guidelines to control opioid prescribing for post-surgery pain

A recent study, conducted at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH, suggests that more vigilant prescribing guidelines could reduce the number of opioid pills a patient receives after surgery, whilst still meeting pain management needs.

1 Dec 2017

Opioid epidemic likely applies to high-risk dialysis population, study shows

A new analysis indicates that the US opioid epidemic likely applies to the unique population of dialysis patients. The study, which appears in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, also found links between higher opioid drug prescription and increased risks of dialysis discontinuation, hospitalization, and early death.

22 Sep 2017

FDA approves drug as add-on treatment for Parkinson's disease patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Xadago (safinamide) tablets as an add-on treatment for patients with Parkinson's disease who are currently taking levodopa/carbidopa and experiencing "off" episodes.

21 Mar 2017

Study finds sharp rise in number of older Americans taking multiple brain-affecting drugs

The number of older Americans who take three or more medicines that affect their brains has more than doubled in just a decade, a new study finds.

14 Feb 2017

New vaccine shows potential to decrease risk of fatal opioid overdose

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have developed a vaccine that blocks the pain-numbing effects of the opioid drugs oxycodone and hydrocodone in animal models.

23 Nov 2016

New initiative aims to prevent opioid addition among surgical patients in Michigan

America's opioid drug epidemic has struck hard in Michigan. But now, a team from the University of Michigan is striking back at a key factor: opioid prescriptions for patients before and after surgery.

25 Oct 2016

Majority of American adults use prescription drugs inappropriately and dangerously

The majority of American adults taking opioids and other commonly prescribed medications use them in ways that put their health at risk, including potentially dangerous combinations with other drugs, according to a new study from Quest Diagnostics, the world’s leading provider of diagnostic information services.

From Quest Diagnostics 29 Jul 2016

FDA issues draft guidance to support development of approved ADF opioids

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today issued a draft guidance intended to support industry in their development of generic versions of approved opioids with abuse-deterrent formulations (ADF) while ensuring that generic ADF opioids are no less abuse-deterrent than the brand-name drug.

25 Mar 2016

Opioid abuse in pregnant women increases 127% in 14 years

The number of pregnant women who abuse or are dependent on opioids (narcotics) jumped 127 percent in 14 years, leading to an increased risk of maternal death and stillbirth among other serious problems, according to a review of more than 57 million American women admitted for delivery.

19 Nov 2014

New lifesaving product aims at reducing death toll from heroin abuse

A new, lifesaving product aimed at reducing the death toll from heroin abuse — developed by a professor at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy — is in its final round of clinical trials and has received Fast Track designation by the Food and Drug Administration.

7 Aug 2014

New tool promises to reduce deaths caused by heroin overdose

A new, lifesaving product aimed at reducing the death toll from heroin abuse - developed by a professor at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy - is in its final round of clinical trials and has received Fast Track designation by the Food and Drug Administration.

7 Aug 2014

Purdue Pharma seeks FDA authorization to market once-daily hydrocodone bitartrate tablet

Purdue Pharma L.P. announced that it has filed a New Drug Application (NDA) with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration seeking authorization to market a once-daily, single-entity hydrocodone bitartrate tablet (HYD).

30 Apr 2014

Treatment for opioid overdose now available for use by non-medical personnel

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first naloxone treatment specifically designed to be given by family members or caregivers to treat a person with opioid overdose.

4 Apr 2014

Reformulated OxyContin®: an interview with Dr. Paul Coplan, Executive Director, Risk Management and Epidemiology, Purdue Pharma

OxyContin contains oxycodone, which is an opioid agonist. It is used for the management of moderate to severe pain when a constant opioid analgesic is needed for a prolonged period of time.

29 Aug 2013

Researchers develop new opioid drug for chronic pain

A team of researchers led by Andrew Coop, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, has developed a new opioid drug that shows great potential to advance treatment and improve quality of life for individuals living with chronic pain.

29 Aug 2013

Lightlake Therapeutics announces Phase II clinical trial results of nasal spray treatment for BED

Lightlake Therapeutics Inc., a biopharmaceutical company developing addiction treatments based on its expertise in opioid antagonists, announced today that results of the Company's Phase II clinical trial of its nasal spray treatment for Binge Eating Disorder were presented at the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting in San Francisco by Professor Hannu Alho, MD, professor of addiction medicine at the University of Helsinki and Principal Investigator for the trial.

23 May 2013

Peripheral neuropathic pain patch treatments: an interview with Anne Hodgkins, Astellas Pharma

Peripheral neuropathic pain is caused by lesion or disease to the peripheral somatosensory nervous system. Nerve damage that can lead to peripheral neuropathic pain can happen as a result of a range of different diseases, medications or traumatic injuries.

8 May 2013