Overdose News and Research

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Researchers design transdisciplinary course to prepare future clinicians in opioid crisis

Opioid use disorder and overdose have reached unprecedented levels around the world. In the United States, remediation of pain is one of the most common reasons American adults seek healthcare.

18 Sep 2020

Virtual reality found to be effective in opioid overdose reversal training

The United States has seen a 200% increase in the rate of deaths by opioid overdose in the last 20 years. But many of these deaths were preventable.

14 Sep 2020

Regular cannabis use does not appear to increase pain sensitivity, study suggests

A recent study examining pain among cannabis users suggests that--unlike long-term opioid use--regular cannabis use does not appear to increase pain sensitivity.

10 Sep 2020

FDA issues warning letters to website operators for illegally selling opioids online

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued warning letters to 17 website operators for illegally selling unapproved and misbranded opioids online in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.

10 Sep 2020

Study analyzes the rates and dosages of opioid prescriptions after arthroscopic knee surgery

New research from Texas A&M University and the University of Pennsylvania on opioid prescribing practices across the country after outpatient knee surgeries found that prescription strength and number of tablets is prescribed highest in Oklahoma and lowest in Vermont.

9 Sep 2020

Nasal sprays are a known remedy for preventing opioid overdose deaths

Between 250 and 270 people die each year from heroin or opioid overdoses in Norway. In the EU, thousands die. European users now have a better option available for helping each other.

3 Sep 2020

The Hastings Center Report: Bioethics challenge of opioid crisis

It is popular, Rieder observes, to claim that we know what we, as a society, ought to do to solve America's opioid crisis--we simply don't want it badly enough.

1 Sep 2020

Higher dosage of opioids for outpatient knee surgery is linked to increased risk of overdose death

A new study published in BMJ Open found that opioid prescription rates for outpatient knee surgery vary widely across the country, but the strength of the average prescription in the United States is at a level that has been linked to an increased risk of overdose death.

26 Aug 2020

Artificial intelligence method can rapidly and remotely detect fentanyl and derivatives

To help keep first responders safe, University of Central Florida researchers have developed an artificial intelligence method that not only rapidly and remotely detects the powerful drug fentanyl, but also teaches itself to detect any previously unknown derivatives made in clandestine batches.

25 Aug 2020

Research shows nonprescribed fentanyl and stimulants were the major cause for overdose mortality

Nonprescribed fentanyl and stimulants were the primary contributors to overdose mortality, while few people had prescribed opioids in their systems, according to new toxicology research in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

24 Aug 2020

Lifetime risk of death from firearms, drug overdoses is substantial in the United States

A new study appearing in The American Journal of Medicine, published by Elsevier, calculates the lifetime risk of death from firearms and drug overdoses in the United States.

19 Aug 2020

Back-pain patients taking opioid painkillers produce anti-opioid antibodies

University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists have discovered that a majority of back-pain patients they tested who were taking opioid painkillers produced anti-opioid antibodies.

17 Aug 2020

Patients face challenges in getting treatment for opioid addictions

Women are having a difficult time getting into treatment for opioid addictions, according to a Vanderbilt University Medical Center study published today in JAMA Network Open.

14 Aug 2020

Boston Medical Center receives $3.7 million grant to expand fellowship programs in addiction

Boston Medical Center's Grayken Center for Addiction has received a five-year, $3.7 million grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration to expand its fellowship programs in addiction medicine and addiction psychiatry.

12 Aug 2020

Opioid risk is higher for patients transitioning to skilled nursing facilities

Hospital patients discharged to skilled nursing facilities often bring a high-dose painkiller prescription with them, suggesting more attention should be paid to opioid safety for those patients, research from the Oregon State University College of Pharmacy shows.

11 Aug 2020

First-time opioid prescriptions may lead to substance-related problems later in life

Young adults and adolescents who are prescribed opioids for the first time may be at a slightly greater risk of developing a substance-related problem later in life, according to a new study co-authored by Indiana University researchers.

11 Aug 2020

Opioid initiation risk in young adults, adolescents may not be as high as previously thought

10 Aug 2020

Study: UnityPhilly app can help fight America's opioid crisis

Equipped with naloxone and a smartphone app, community members can save lives in the fight against America's opioid crisis, according to a paper from researchers at Drexel University's Dornsife School of Public Health and colleagues published this week in The Lancet journal EClinicalMedicine.

6 Aug 2020

Drug overdoses can lead to PTSD symptoms

Drug overdoses are psychologically traumatic events that can lead to symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a study focused on female sex workers in Baltimore City that was led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

5 Aug 2020

Study shows link between selenium-deficient diet and paracetamol toxicity

A lack of the mineral selenium in the diet puts people at risk of paracetamol overdose, even when the painkiller is taken at levels claimed to be safe on the packaging, according to collaborative research emerging from the University of Bath and Southwest University in China.