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Programs to prevent prescription drug misuse may be underused, study reveals

Misuse of prescription pain medications remains a major public health problem -- but programs to prevent it may be underused, according to a study in the July issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

29 Jun 2016

Natural molecule NAC could benefit patients with Parkinson's disease

The natural molecule, n-acetylcysteine (NAC), with strong antioxidant effects, shows potential benefit as part of the management for patients with Parkinson's disease, according to a study published today in the journal PLOS ONE.

17 Jun 2016

Opioid use common among Medicare beneficiaries after hospital discharge

Nearly 15 percent of opioid-naïve patients hospitalized under Medicare are discharged with a new prescription for opioids, according to a study published today in JAMA Internal Medicine.

15 Jun 2016

New survey reveals more than half of patients prescribed opioids have leftover pills

In the midst of an epidemic of prescription painkiller addiction and overdose deaths, a new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health survey suggests that more than half of patients prescribed opioids have leftover pills -- and many save them to use later.

14 Jun 2016

Study identifies persistent opioid use in some patients after knee or hip replacement

Many patients undergoing hip or knee replacement are still taking prescription opioid pain medications up to six months after surgery, reports a study in PAIN, the official publication of the International Association for the Study of Pain.

1 Jun 2016

Reducing use of opioid medications possible, but challenging

A team of researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and the VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System recently surveyed patients to understand barriers to reducing the use of opioids to manage chronic pain. The results of those interviews are published in the current issue of the journal Pain Medicine.

28 May 2016

Inadequate monitoring places post-operative patients at risk for opioid-induced respiratory depression

Nearly 75 percent of hospitalized patients receiving opioids for pain management are not monitored according to hospital guidelines.

28 May 2016

Pharmacist suggests education as foremost strategy to control opioid abuse

Technologies that make it harder for people to abuse opioids - like doctoring pills so that they produce unpleasant side effects if broken, crushed or injected -- likely will have limited effectiveness in stemming the global epidemic of opioid abuse, according to Adam Kaye, a professor of pharmacy at University of the Pacific.

28 May 2016

New understanding of neurotransmitter transporter mechanism gives hope for treating depression, addicition

When nerve cells have to communicate with each other in our brains, it involves release of small signal molecules, the so-called neurotransmitters, which act as chemical messengers in specific points of contact between nerve cells, called synapses.

27 May 2016

First buprenorphine implant for opioid dependence treatment gets FDA approval

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Probuphine, the first buprenorphine implant for the maintenance treatment of opioid dependence. Probuphine is designed to provide a constant, low-level dose of buprenorphine for six months in patients who are already stable on low-to-moderate doses of other forms of buprenorphine, as part of a complete treatment program.

27 May 2016

Antidote-resistant overdose patients may have received synthetic opioid W-18, suspects anesthesiologist

Months ago, ASRA member and anesthesiologist Anita Gupta, MD, suspected overdose patients had received heroin spiked with a synthetic opioid additive because they were not responding to the antidote, naloxone, routinely used by emergency workers.

25 May 2016

NMS 2016: Researchers highlight knowledge gaps related to children's paracetamol products

A study of adults who had recently purchased children’s paracetamol has indicated that many people don’t know basic information about the commonly used medicine.

23 May 2016

Easy, immediate access to effective antidotes could help reduce deaths from opioid overdose

Over the past 15 years, deaths caused by heroin and prescription opioid overdoses have quadrupled despite the existence of a highly effective antidote. The cover story in Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly news magazine of the American Chemical Society, explores what it might take to turn the tide.

19 May 2016

Enzyme previously thought beneficial could pose threat to developing embryos

A pair of Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation scientists have discovered that an enzyme previously thought only to be beneficial could, in fact, pose significant danger to developing embryos. The new research could have implications not only for prenatal development but also for treating lymphedema and liver damage resulting from acetaminophen overdose.

5 May 2016

Study shows impact of increasing number of opioid-related hospitalizations on health care costs

Infection is a serious complication of intravenous drug abuse and a major cause of illness and death among intravenous drug users. As the national problem of opioid abuse, including of heroin, continues to grow, new research by clinicians at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the VA Boston Healthcare System, published today in the May issue of the journal Health Affairs, offers new insights into the significant impact of the trend on opioid-related hospitalizations, infectious complications and health care costs.

3 May 2016

Motivational interviewing can help reduce risky use of pain pills

As America battles an epidemic of deaths from misused pain pills, a new study suggests an inexpensive way to cut risky use of these drugs by people who have a high chance of overdosing.

21 Apr 2016

Analysis reveals improved survivorship for acute liver failure patients

More patients hospitalized with acute liver failure - often the result of acetaminophen overdose - are surviving, including those who receive a liver transplant and those who don't, an analysis led by a UT Southwestern Medical Center researcher showed.

5 Apr 2016

Electrical stimulation of deep brain structures to ease chronic pain

Abuse of prescription opioid medicines used to treat chronic pain has reached epidemic proportions, so much that the White House has announced new efforts to combat addiction and prevent the thousands of overdose-related deaths reported in the U.S. each year.

5 Apr 2016

Naltrexone injections could reduce risk of relapse among opioid dependent individuals

In a multicenter, randomized clinical trial, ex-prisoners who received six monthly injections of naltrexone--a long-acting medication that blocks opioid receptors in the brain--were significantly less likely to resume opioid use than those who received counseling and referrals to community treatment centers without naltrexone.

31 Mar 2016

Opioids could be dangerous, deadly at high doses

Most people know that heroin is a dangerous drug, but its cousins, the legal, pharmaceutical opioids, such as codeine or hydrocodone, must be safe, right?Not so fast.Opioids—which include the illegal drug heroin as well as prescription medications, including hydrocodone (such as Vicodin), oxycodone (such as OxyContin and Percocet), morphine and codeine—can be dangerous, even deadly, at high doses.

31 Mar 2016

Overdose News and Research

Programs to prevent prescription drug misuse may be underused, study reveals

Natural molecule NAC could benefit patients with Parkinson's disease

Opioid use common among Medicare beneficiaries after hospital discharge

New survey reveals more than half of patients prescribed opioids have leftover pills

Study identifies persistent opioid use in some patients after knee or hip replacement

Reducing use of opioid medications possible, but challenging

Inadequate monitoring places post-operative patients at risk for opioid-induced respiratory depression

Pharmacist suggests education as foremost strategy to control opioid abuse

New understanding of neurotransmitter transporter mechanism gives hope for treating depression, addicition

First buprenorphine implant for opioid dependence treatment gets FDA approval

Antidote-resistant overdose patients may have received synthetic opioid W-18, suspects anesthesiologist

NMS 2016: Researchers highlight knowledge gaps related to children's paracetamol products

Easy, immediate access to effective antidotes could help reduce deaths from opioid overdose

Enzyme previously thought beneficial could pose threat to developing embryos

Study shows impact of increasing number of opioid-related hospitalizations on health care costs

Motivational interviewing can help reduce risky use of pain pills

Analysis reveals improved survivorship for acute liver failure patients

Electrical stimulation of deep brain structures to ease chronic pain

Naltrexone injections could reduce risk of relapse among opioid dependent individuals

Opioids could be dangerous, deadly at high doses

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