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.

Injection of opioids may increase infective endocarditis risk

People who inject drugs are at a high risk for a number of health issues. In a new study from ICES, Lawson Health Research Institute and Western University, researchers discovered a significant rise in the risk of infective endocarditis, a serious heart infection, among Ontarians who inject drugs.

28 Jan 2019

New research reveals that prescription opioids are used long-term to treat severe osteoarthritis

New research published in Arthritis & Rheumatology, an official journal of the American College of Rheumatology, reveals that prescription opioids are commonly used long-term to treat pain in older patients with severe osteoarthritis.

28 Jan 2019

Penn's novel ERAS protocol for spinal surgery patients reduces opioid use

A novel "Enhanced Recovery After Surgery" (ERAS) protocol developed by Penn Medicine for patients undergoing spinal and peripheral nerve surgery significantly reduced opioid use.

25 Jan 2019

UC team designs new naloxone-dispensing smart device

Like many cities across the country, Cincinnati has been rocked by the opioid epidemic, with an ever-fluctuating range of 50 to 80 overdoses per week across the Tristate. Many of those victims are revived by the overdose reversal medication, naloxone, which has proven to be a crucial lifesaving tool during this crisis.

23 Jan 2019

Opioid overdose patients can be safely discharged an hour after administration of naloxone

Suspected opioid overdose patients treated with naloxone are safe for discharge from the emergency department after one hour.

23 Jan 2019

Study takes a step closer to understanding the body's response to opioid painkillers

Researchers have taken a step closer to understanding the body's response to opioid painkillers such as morphine and fentanyl, which could lead to the development of safer opioid drugs.

21 Jan 2019

Increased physician-targeted marketing associated with higher opioid overdose deaths

Many individuals cite prescription opioids as their gateway to illicit opioid use. However, while prescription opioids are involved in more than one-third of all opioid overdose deaths in the U.S., examining any correlation between prescription opioid overdose deaths and pharmaceutical industry marketing has been limited -- until now.

21 Jan 2019

County by county, researchers link opioid deaths to drugmakers’ marketing

Researchers sketched a vivid line Friday linking the dollars spent by drugmakers to woo doctors around the country to a vast opioid epidemic that has led to tens of thousands of deaths.

18 Jan 2019

Opioid drugs often overprescribed to children for pain relief, say CHOP surgeons

Opioid drugs prescribed to children for pain relief after a typical pediatric orthopaedic procedure may be significantly overprescribed, according to a new study by researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP).

17 Jan 2019

Most substance use disorder treatment facilities do not offer medication treatment

Despite the mounting death toll of America's opioid crisis, only a minority of facilities that treat substance use disorders offer patients buprenorphine, naltrexone or methadone--the three FDA-approved medications for the long-term management of opioid use disorder, according to a new study from researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

16 Jan 2019

Keele University researchers receive £2.4 million grant to help reduce overprescribing of opioids

A research team from Keele University's Institute for Primary Care and Health Sciences has been awarded a major grant of £2.4 million from the National Institute for Health Research to investigate the overprescribing of opioid painkillers, and to improve care for patients with persistent pain - without the use of long-term opioids.

14 Jan 2019

Meth’s resurgence spotlights lack of meds to combat the addiction

In 2016, news reports warned the public of an opioid epidemic gripping the nation. But Madeline Vaughn, then a lead clinical intake coordinator at the Houston-based addiction treatment organization Council on Recovery, sensed something different was going on with the patients she checked in from the street.

14 Jan 2019

Opiod prescriptions for pet dogs misused by their masters

A new study has shown that Americans are probably increasingly consuming the opioid analgesics that are prescribed for their pet dogs. The research shows that one of the reasons behind rise in the opioid epidemic could be the rise in prescription opioids for dogs.

14 Jan 2019

Misused veterinary prescriptions could contribute to the ongoing opioid epidemic

The increase in opioid prescriptions for people over the past decade may have been paralleled by an increase in opioid prescriptions for pets, according to a study from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine and the School of Veterinary Medicine.

11 Jan 2019

Emergency medical responders confront racial bias

A recent study out of Oregon suggests emergency medical responders — EMTs and paramedics — may be treating minority patients differently from the way they treat white patients.

11 Jan 2019

UTSA researchers reveal important insight into cocaine addiction

Researchers at The University of Texas at San Antonio have revealed significant insight into cocaine addiction, a phenomenon which has grown significantly in the United States since 2015.

10 Jan 2019

Research examines patterns in back pain over time

Back pain is among the most frequently reported health problems in the world. New research published in Arthritis Care & Research, an official journal of the American College of Rheumatology and the Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals, examines patterns in back pain over time and identifies the patient characteristics and the extent of healthcare and medication use (including opioids) associated with different patterns.

10 Jan 2019

Research shows connection between social media use and impaired risky decision-making

Bad decision-making is a trait oftentimes associated with drug addicts and pathological gamblers, but what about people who excessively use social media? New research from Michigan State University shows a connection between social media use and impaired risky decision-making, which is commonly deficient in substance addiction.

10 Jan 2019

Mapping a person's genetic makeup can help save billions each year in health costs

A UniSA scientist has called for Australia to embrace pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing to deliver medication more effectively and slash around $2.4 billion wasted each year through unsafe and ineffective drug prescriptions.

9 Jan 2019

Caution must be taken while prescribing opioid to tobacco users to prevent addiction

Tobacco is a known risk factor for the misuse of prescription opioids. In addition, concurrent use of opioids and sedative-hypnotics is a risk factor for opioid overdose or addiction.

9 Jan 2019

Opioids News and Research

Further Reading

Injection of opioids may increase infective endocarditis risk

New research reveals that prescription opioids are used long-term to treat severe osteoarthritis

Penn's novel ERAS protocol for spinal surgery patients reduces opioid use

UC team designs new naloxone-dispensing smart device

Opioid overdose patients can be safely discharged an hour after administration of naloxone

Study takes a step closer to understanding the body's response to opioid painkillers

Increased physician-targeted marketing associated with higher opioid overdose deaths

County by county, researchers link opioid deaths to drugmakers’ marketing

Opioid drugs often overprescribed to children for pain relief, say CHOP surgeons

Most substance use disorder treatment facilities do not offer medication treatment

Keele University researchers receive £2.4 million grant to help reduce overprescribing of opioids

Meth’s resurgence spotlights lack of meds to combat the addiction

Opiod prescriptions for pet dogs misused by their masters

Misused veterinary prescriptions could contribute to the ongoing opioid epidemic

Emergency medical responders confront racial bias

UTSA researchers reveal important insight into cocaine addiction

Research examines patterns in back pain over time

Research shows connection between social media use and impaired risky decision-making

Mapping a person's genetic makeup can help save billions each year in health costs

Caution must be taken while prescribing opioid to tobacco users to prevent addiction

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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