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Persistent opioid use among 12% of patients after cardiac implantable electronic device procedures

About 12 percent of patients who receive implantable cardiac devices such as a pacemaker or defibrillator and fill an opioid prescription after surgery will consistently use the pain medication in the months afterward, raising the potential for addiction following these common procedures and identifying another pathway that could contribute to the national opioid crisis, according to a new study by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

26 Nov 2021

Research on psychedelics could lead to new treatments for mental illness

One in five U.S. adults will experience a mental illness in their lifetime, according to the National Alliance of Mental Health. But standard treatments can be slow to work and cause side effects.

24 Nov 2021

Context-dependent, untangled persistency facilitates value signal coding across the brain

In 2019 University of California San Diego researchers discovered the area of the brain where "value decisions" are made.

24 Nov 2021

Study aims to understand how prenatal factors, early life experiences influence child brain development

Cynthia Rogers, MD, visits a baby in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit at St. Louis Children's Hospital. Rogers is helping lead a national study aimed at understanding how prenatal factors and early life experiences influence brain development and behavior in infants and young children.

23 Nov 2021

Helpline data reveals mental health concerns during COVID-19 pandemic

The authors used data from helplines to estimate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the containment policies, and the income support policies separately.

22 Nov 2021

Boston Children's receives NIH grant to co-lead HEALthy Brain and Child Development study

Boston Children's Hospital has been awarded two five-year grants by the National Institutes of Health to co-lead the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) study, an ambitious, comprehensive national study of brain development from birth through early childhood.

17 Nov 2021

Death from heart attack or stroke may be the first CVD event in some smokers

Death from a heart attack or stroke may be the first cardiovascular disease (CVD) event in some people who smoke cigarettes and CVD is the leading adverse health effect among smokers, according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open access journal of the American Heart Association.

17 Nov 2021

Researchers examine the impact of prolonged COVID-19 pandemic on psychiatric symptoms

Family and friends who have become social recluses, or co-workers who feel depressed and are unable to come to work...most of us probably know someone in one of these situations.

12 Nov 2021

UArizona researchers get closer to developing a safe, effective non-opioid pain reliever

Researchers at the University of Arizona Health Sciences are closer to developing a safe and effective non-opioid pain reliever after a study showed that a new compound they created reduces the sensation of pain by regulating a biological channel linked to pain.

10 Nov 2021

As overdose deaths soar, DEA-wary pharmacies shy from dispensing addiction medication

When Martin Njoku saw opioid addiction devastate his West Virginia community, he felt compelled to help. This was the place he'd called home for three decades, where he'd raised his two girls and turned his dream of owning a pharmacy into reality.

9 Nov 2021

Psychology professor secures $2.59 million NIH grant to study the brain mechanisms of addiction

A five-year, $2.59 million grant from the National Institutes of Health will allow a psychology professor at Binghamton University, State University of New York to study the mechanisms of addiction.

2 Nov 2021

Merging AI with targeted electrical brain stimulation to improve specific human brain functions

In a pilot human study, researchers from the University of Minnesota Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital show it is possible to improve specific human brain functions related to self-control and mental flexibility by merging artificial intelligence with targeted electrical brain stimulation.

1 Nov 2021

Relaxing limits on take-home methadone did not lead to worse outcomes

Relaxing limits on take-home doses of methadone - a medication used to treat opioid addiction - does not appear to lead to worse treatment outcomes, according to a new study led by Washington State University researchers.

1 Nov 2021

CDC launches complementary education campaigns to save more lives from drug overdose

To save more lives from drug overdose, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently launched four complementary education campaigns intended to reach young adults ages 18 - 34 years.

30 Oct 2021

£66 million funding to provide safe and warm accommodation for rough sleepers over winter

Rough sleepers will be helped into safe and warm accommodation and treatment services for drug and alcohol dependency this winter, supported by an extra £66 million the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced today (29 October 2021).

29 Oct 2021

England could be the first to prescribe e-cigarettes to tackle disparities in smoking rates

E-cigarettes could be prescribed on the NHS in England to help people stop smoking tobacco products, as Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid welcomed the latest step forward in the licensing process for manufacturers.

28 Oct 2021

Gradual nicotine reduction key to helping e-cigarette users quit, shows study

New research from UBC Okanagan shows that gradual nicotine reduction is key to helping e-cigarette users quit.

27 Oct 2021

Physical therapy associated with lower odds of long-term opioid use after total knee replacement

The world's most common form of arthritis, knee osteoarthritis, causes sufferers pain and hurts their quality of life.

27 Oct 2021

Molecular mechanism that controls the transition from acute to chronic pain revealed

A new study led by University of California, Irvine researchers is the first to reveal the specific molecular mechanism that controls the transition from acute to chronic pain, and identifies this mechanism as a critical target for disease-modifying medicines.

25 Oct 2021

DC’s Harllee Harper is using public health tools to prevent gun violence. Will it work?

After four people were murdered in one week in early September — all in the same Washington, D.C., neighborhood — residents made a plea for help.

21 Oct 2021