Overdose News and Research

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Overdosing on chemo: A common gene test could save hundreds of lives each year

One January morning in 2021, Carol Rosen took a standard treatment for metastatic breast cancer. Three gruesome weeks later, she died in excruciating pain from the very drug meant to prolong her life.

26 Mar 2024

A paramedic was skeptical about this Rx for stopping repeat opioid overdoses. Then he saw it help.

Fire Capt. Jesse Blaire steered his SUV through the mobile home park until he spotted the little beige house with white trim and radioed to let dispatchers know he'd arrived.

25 Mar 2024

Researchers sound a clarion call for greater investment in bereavement care

The public health toll from bereavement is well-documented in the medical literature, with bereaved persons at greater risk for many adverse outcomes, including mental health challenges, decreased quality of life, health care neglect, cancer, heart disease, suicide, and death.

15 Mar 2024

West Virginia city once battered by opioid overdoses confronts ‘fourth wave’

From 2006 through 2014, more than 81 million painkiller pills were shipped to this city and surrounding rural Cabell County.

13 Mar 2024

DNA aptamer-based sensors can accurately detect trace amounts of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new generation of high-performance DNA aptamers and highly accurate drug sensors for cocaine and other opioids.

5 Mar 2024

RMIT-led study highlights the urgent need for more drug testing facilities in Australia

Testing of illicit drugs bought online found 35% were not what they said they were, highlighting the urgent need for more local drug testing facilities in Australia to prevent harm and overdose.

5 Mar 2024

Statistical models vs. front-line workers: Who knows best how to spend opioid settlement cash?

In this Gulf Coast city, addiction medicine doctor Stephen Loyd announced at a January event what he called "a game-changer" for state and local governments spending billions of dollars in opioid settlement funds.

5 Mar 2024

How a friend’s death turned Colorado teens into anti-overdose activists

Gavinn McKinney loved Nike shoes, fireworks, and sushi. He was studying Potawatomi, one of the languages of his Native American heritage.

1 Mar 2024

California hospitals, advocates seek stable funding to retain behavioral health navigators

Health providers and addiction experts warn the funding structure is unstable for a California initiative that steers patients with substance use disorder into long-term treatment after they are discharged from emergency rooms, which has already led some critical employees to leave their jobs.

1 Mar 2024

Horse sedative use among humans spreads in deadly mixture of ‘tranq’ and fentanyl

Andrew McClave Jr. loved to lift weights. The 6-foot-4-inch bartender resembled a bodybuilder and once posed for a photo flexing his muscles with former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan.

26 Feb 2024

National survey reveals high exposure to drug overdose deaths among Americans

More than 40% of Americans know someone who has died of a drug overdose and about one-third of those individuals say their lives were disrupted by the death, according to a new RAND study.

21 Feb 2024

Maternal mental illness: An under-recognized contributor to the mortality of new mothers

Painting a sobering picture, a research team led by Children's National Hospital culled years of data demonstrating that maternal mental illness is an under-recognized contributor to the death of new mothers.

21 Feb 2024

‘Fourth wave’ of opioid epidemic crashes ashore, propelled by fentanyl and meth

The United States is knee-deep in what some experts call the opioid epidemic's "fourth wave," which is not only placing drug users at greater risk but is also complicating efforts to address the nation's drug problem.

21 Feb 2024

Study reveals racial disparities in access to buprenorphine for opioid use disorder

Buprenorphine, a life-saving medication for opioid use disorder, is far less accessible in geographic areas of the United States with racially and ethnically diverse populations than in predominantly white areas, according to a new study of pre-pandemic data led by health policy scientists at the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health published today in Journal of Addiction Medicine.

20 Feb 2024

California prison drug overdoses surge again after early treatment success

Drug overdose deaths in California state prisons rebounded to near record levels last year even as corrections officials touted the state's intervention methods as a model for prisons and jails across the United States.

14 Feb 2024

New guidelines set safer standards for dental pain relief

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) taken alone or along with acetaminophen are recommended as first-line treatments for managing short-term dental pain in adults and adolescents aged 12 or older, according to a new clinical practice guideline developed by the American Dental Association (ADA), the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine and the Center for Integrative Global Oral Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine.

6 Feb 2024

Expert calls for harm reduction to address drug overdose crisis

With more than 100,000 drug overdose deaths in the United States in one year, communities need more than 'just say no' drug prevention education and abstinence-only addiction treatment to save lives, an expert has warned.

6 Feb 2024

Study says parents may overshoot fluoride toothpaste dose for toddlers, risking dental fluorosis

Study finds parents significantly overdose children with fluoride toothpaste, suggesting a shift to fluoride-free alternatives to prevent overconsumption and potential fluorosis.

1 Feb 2024

Pitt secures $7.8 million grant to improve quality of care for patients with opioid use disorder

The University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy's Program Evaluation and Research Unit (PERU) has received a five-year, $7.8 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to improve quality of care for patients with opioid use disorder across Pennsylvania.

30 Jan 2024

Female sex hormone estradiol makes women more susceptible to cocaine addiction

Previous studies focused on cocaine use have found that women are more likely than men to develop an addiction, try cocaine at a younger age, use larger amounts of the drug, and suffer from overdose.

30 Jan 2024

Overdose News and Research

Overdosing on chemo: A common gene test could save hundreds of lives each year

A paramedic was skeptical about this Rx for stopping repeat opioid overdoses. Then he saw it help.

Researchers sound a clarion call for greater investment in bereavement care

West Virginia city once battered by opioid overdoses confronts ‘fourth wave’

DNA aptamer-based sensors can accurately detect trace amounts of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine

RMIT-led study highlights the urgent need for more drug testing facilities in Australia

Statistical models vs. front-line workers: Who knows best how to spend opioid settlement cash?

How a friend’s death turned Colorado teens into anti-overdose activists

California hospitals, advocates seek stable funding to retain behavioral health navigators

Horse sedative use among humans spreads in deadly mixture of ‘tranq’ and fentanyl

National survey reveals high exposure to drug overdose deaths among Americans

Maternal mental illness: An under-recognized contributor to the mortality of new mothers

‘Fourth wave’ of opioid epidemic crashes ashore, propelled by fentanyl and meth

Study reveals racial disparities in access to buprenorphine for opioid use disorder

California prison drug overdoses surge again after early treatment success

New guidelines set safer standards for dental pain relief

Expert calls for harm reduction to address drug overdose crisis

Study says parents may overshoot fluoride toothpaste dose for toddlers, risking dental fluorosis

Pitt secures $7.8 million grant to improve quality of care for patients with opioid use disorder

Female sex hormone estradiol makes women more susceptible to cocaine addiction

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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