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Health Affairs report describes ground-breaking effort that aims to prevent opioid abuse

Fatal overdoses involving prescribed opioids tripled in the United States between 1999 and 2006, climbing to almost 14,000 deaths annually-more than cocaine and heroin overdoses combined. Hospitalizations and emergency room visits related to prescription opioid pain medicines such as oxycodone and hydrocodone also increased dramatically in the same period.

5 Aug 2011

Homeless people report using street drugs to treat their pain

Chronic pain is not managed well in the general population and it's an even greater challenge for homeless people, according to new research by St. Michael's Hospital.

22 Jul 2011

Study finds high prevalence of prescription pain medication addiction in chronic patients

A new study by Geisinger Health System researchers finds a high prevalence of prescription pain medication addiction among chronic pain patients.

22 Jul 2011

Dealing with chronic pain

For people with severe chronic pain like Kelly Young and Teresa Shaffer—both of whom have become patient advocates —coping with agony is a fact of life. Young suffers from rheumatoid arthritis while Shaffer's pain is linked primarily to another degenerative bone disease.

21 Jul 2011

New anti-abuse formulation of painkiller Oxycodone

It has come to health officials’ attention nationwide that there is a serious rise of abuse of painkillers, especially opioids. Federal officials recently stepped up plans to monitor frequent prescribers and users.

21 Jun 2011

Longer looks: Conservatives vs. liberals on Medicare - who's winning?

What you really need to know is that Tuesday was a great day in court for supporters of the Care Act and a very tough one for its opponents. That dynamic could easily change within the next six weeks or so when the 11th Circuit, the 6th Circuit, and the 3rd Circuit also hold their oral arguments on Care Act appeals. Either way, we are one step closer to the end of all of this, and you can bet that the justices were paying attention up the road a bit from Richmond.

13 May 2011

Omeros' PDE7 program expands addiction franchise

Omeros Corporation today announced that its phosphodiesterase 7 inhibitors demonstrated robust efficacy in animal models of nicotine addiction.

6 May 2011

Longer looks: Autism researcher's legacy; methadone for prisoners

Andrew Wakefield has become one of the most reviled doctors of his generation, blamed directly and indirectly, depending on the accuser, for irresponsibly starting a panic with tragic repercussions: vaccination rates so low that childhood diseases once all but eradicated here —whooping cough and measles, among them — have re-emerged, endangering young lives. And yet here he was in Texas, post-career-apocalypse, calmly discussing his work, and a crowd of around 250 people showed up to listen.

29 Apr 2011

Watson reports net revenue of $876.5 million for first quarter 2011

Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported net revenue of $876.5 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2011, compared to $856.5 million in the first quarter 2010.

27 Apr 2011

Unintentional prescription opioid overdose deaths have reached epidemic proportions in the U.S.

Unintentional overdose deaths in teens and adults have reached epidemic proportions in the U.S. In some 20 states in 2007 the number of unintentional drug poisoning deaths exceeded either motor vehicle crashes or suicides, two of the leading causes of injury death.

26 Apr 2011

Feds announce comprehensive plan to combat painkiller abuse

The new strategy will put increased pressure on the state of Florida, which has a reputation as being "the nation's pill mill."

21 Apr 2011

Stepped up measures to tack rising painkiller abuse

Prescription drug abuse is one of the largest problems in the country say experts and according to White House drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske, the Congress must require special training for doctors and other health care workers before they are allowed to prescribe powerful drugs such as OxyContin.

20 Apr 2011

Plans to combat painkiller abuse

This Tuesday, the Obama administration announced a plan to fight prescription drug abuse, warning that accidental fatal overdoses now exceed the combined deadly overdoses from the crack epidemic of the 1980s and black tar heroin in the 1970s.

19 Apr 2011

State Roundup: Budget cuts in Texas, Wash. State; Ariz. smoking, weight fees; Coping with Rx drug abuse

The Texas House voted 98-49 Sunday night to slash funding for public schools, nursing homes and college financial aid in a dramatic show by Republicans elected on a limited-government message in the face of a massive budget shortfall.

4 Apr 2011

Research links frequent prescribing to opioid-related deaths

Some physicians are prescribing opioids such as OxyContin 55 times as often as others, according to a new study led by St. Michael's Hospital and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES). The study found most opioid-related deaths occur among patients treated by physicians who frequently prescribe opioids, suggesting doctors who prescribe a lot of opioids may not be doing so safely.

15 Mar 2011

New concerns over prescription narcotics use

Over fifty Australian general practitioners have come under the scanner as part of a national crackdown on inappropriate prescribing of narcotics. The three-month campaign is being carried out by the Medicare following high levels of prescriptions for drugs such as OxyContin and OxyNorm. One GP has been found to be writing over 90 per cent of their prescriptions for narcotics. There are further concerns that the painkillers are being resold on the black market.

7 Mar 2011

Omeros announces license agreement with Daiichi Sankyo for PDE7 inhibitors

Omeros Corporation today announced that its exclusive license to phosphodiesterase 7 inhibitors from Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. has been amended to include addiction and compulsive disorders in the field of use.

23 Feb 2011

2007 financial crisis linked to increase in patients seeking treatment for prescription drug and painkiller addiction

The 2007 onset of the financial crisis that upended the U.S. economy and impacted global markets correlated closely with unprecedented numbers of patients seeking treatment for prescription drug addiction and painkiller abuse, according to leading rehabilitation center Cliffside Malibu. The Cliffside Index, the percentage of patients admitted for treatment related to those medications, rose over 60 percent between 2007 and 2008, and has continued to increase each year.

15 Feb 2011

Ameritox makes significant strides to advance its industry leadership position

Ameritox, the nation's leader in pain medication monitoring, made significant strides to advance its industry leadership position by strengthening the company's commitment to physicians and patients in the past twelve months.

5 Feb 2011

Study finds increased prescription drug abuse among teens

Illicit drugs like marijuana, cocaine and heroin have always been a parent's nightmare. But perfectly legal and easily accessible prescription medications are now the recreational drugs of choice for many teenagers, prompting physicians at Johns Hopkins Children's Center to urge pediatricians to screen specifically for their abuse during routine visits.

4 Feb 2011