Heroin News and Research

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Heroin is a very addictive chemical called diacetylmorphine. Heroin is a modified form of morphine, a highly abundant opium derived from the seedpods of the poppy plant.

Opioid-free anesthesia reduces postoperative nausea, study finds

Opioid-free general anesthesia is safe, effective and dramatically decreases postoperative nausea, according to a single-center study of more than 1,000 patients being presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2017 annual meeting.

24 Oct 2017

New study shows possibility of battling opioid addiction in primary care

For many of the 2 million Americans addicted to opioids, getting good treatment and getting off prescription painkillers or heroin may seem like a far-off dream.

17 Oct 2017

New online tool offers opioid prescribing recommendations after surgery

How many prescription pain pills should a patient receive after breast cancer surgery? Or a hernia repair? Or a gallbladder removal?

16 Oct 2017

Research project seeks to streamline indictments, prosecutions of opiate dealers

Seeking faster indictments and prosecutions of drug dealers after opioid overdose deaths, Case Western Reserve University researchers will re-work protocols followed by Cleveland-area law enforcement.

6 Oct 2017

Hepatitis C drug’s lower cost paves way for Medicaid, prisons to expand treatment

Valerie Green is still waiting to be cured. The Delaware resident was diagnosed with hepatitis C more than two years ago, but she doesn't qualify yet for the Medicaid program's criteria for treatment with a new class of highly effective but pricey drugs. The recent approval of a less expensive drug that generally cures hepatitis C in just eight weeks may make it easier for more insurers and correctional facilities to expand treatment.

3 Oct 2017

Podcast: ‘What the health?’ Repeal and replace is dead. What now?

As predicted, the last-ditch GOP effort to "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act ended the way its predecessors did this week — in failure.

30 Sep 2017

Study uncovers disturbing trends in prescribing opioids for nonmalignant chronic pain

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, more than 90 Americans die every day by overdosing on opioids. While heroin and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl account for part of the crisis, in 2015 about 2 million people in the U.S. suffered from substance use disorders related to prescription opioid pain relievers.

27 Sep 2017

Study highlights sharply increasing trend in long-term use of prescription opioids

The prevalence of prescription opioid use increased from 4.1% of US adults in 1999-2000 to 6.8% in 2013-2014, according to a recent Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety study.

11 Sep 2017

For low-income drug users, Medi-Cal offers a fresh start

Breann Johnson stopped using heroin on Mother's Day this year, determined to end her 13-year addiction. Days later, she began three months of residential treatment in Riverside, Calif. — all paid for by California's Medicaid program.

8 Sep 2017

Research: Brief interventions in primary care clinic could cut patients’ risky drug use

New research finds that brief interventions in a primary care clinic can reduce patients' risky substance use by 4.5 days per month -- a 40 percent decline among the Latino patients surveyed -- compared with people who did not receive the brief intervention.

1 Sep 2017

Research on electrical nerve-block implant aims at treating asthma and heart failure

Biomedical engineering researchers at Case Western Reserve University are refining more than 15 years of work on an electrical nerve-block implant, focusing their next step on new applications related to treating asthma and heart failure.

29 Aug 2017

New vaccine could offer protection against opioid combinations

Substance abuse is a continuing problem in the U.S., particularly with heroin and other opioids, to the point of being an epidemic.

21 Aug 2017

Opioid crisis strains foster care system; programs aim to keep kids with mom

After Raven Mosser gave birth six years ago, she woke up to a social worker in her hospital room. Her newborn son had been born exposed to opioids — drugs she had been abusing for years. If she didn't get clean, she was at risk of losing him.

18 Aug 2017

A long and winding road: Kicking heroin in an opioid ‘treatment desert’

Heather Menzel squirmed in her seat, unable to sleep on the Greyhound bus as it rolled through the early morning darkness toward Bakersfield, in California's Central Valley.

11 Aug 2017

Opioid crisis results in increased admissions to hospital ICUs and deaths

The opioid crisis in the United States is resulting in increased admissions to hospital intensive care units and in increased numbers of ICU deaths from opioid overdoses, according to new research published online, ahead of print in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

11 Aug 2017

Opioid overdose death toll continues upward trend

According to the National Center for Health Statistics report, the overdose deaths among the persons with drug abusers in 2016 is on an upward rise that has not stopped. These rising numbers are disheartening because the intensified efforts to curb these numbers are thus seemingly not working.

8 Aug 2017

Study develops correction methods to provide more accurate estimates of opioid, heroin deaths

Although opioid and heroin deaths have been rising dramatically in the U.S., the magnitude of the epidemic varies from state to state, as does the relative proportion of opioid vs heroin poisonings.

7 Aug 2017

Drug overdose deaths on the rise in Ohio

In light of the Ohio opioid epidemic, Advanced Recovery Systems, an integrated behavioral healthcare management company, recently opened an addiction and co-occurring mental health treatment facility in Groveport: The Recovery Village Columbus. Located 10 miles away from Columbus, this new facility opened on July 11, 2017 and is now accepting patients.

29 Jul 2017

Research shows that opioid prescription practices at Mayo Clinic exceed upcoming guidelines

More than 4 in 5 opioid prescriptions given after surgery over a recent two-year period at Mayo Clinic exceeded guidelines now in the works, the clinic's researchers have found.

14 Jul 2017

Analysis looks at use of multiple substances in reproductive-age women who use opioids

The majority of reproductive-age and pregnant women who use opioids for non-medical purposes also use at least one other substance, ranging from nicotine or alcohol to cocaine, according to a University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health analysis.

30 Jun 2017