Opioids News and Research

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An opioid is a chemical that works by binding to opioid receptors, which are found principally in the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract. The receptors in these two organ systems mediate both the beneficial effects and the side effects of opioids.

Study raises concerns about inappropriate opioid prescribing, lax documentation practices

Nearly 30 percent of outpatient opioid prescriptions in the United States lack documented clinical reasons that justify the use of these potent drugs, according to a national analysis of physician visit records conducted by researchers at Harvard Medical School and the RAND Corporation.

11 Sep 2018

FDA approves Cassipa sublingual film for maintenance treatment of opioid dependence

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Cassipa (buprenorphine and naloxone) sublingual film (applied under the tongue) for the maintenance treatment of opioid dependence.

7 Sep 2018

Researchers develop new generation of pain medications

Researchers from Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and the Zuse Institute Berlin have developed a new generation of pain medications.

7 Sep 2018

Nursing viewpoints on opioid crisis

Addictions nursing specialists have a unique role to play in caring for patients, families, and communities affected by the crisis.

6 Sep 2018

American Pain Society encouraged by progress toward increased funding for pain research

It's been more than two years since the National Institutes of Health released its National Pain Strategy, a comprehensive population health-level strategy for pain, and a year since announcing its Federal Pain Strategy, a long-term strategic plan for pain research.

6 Sep 2018

Rudy Giuliani’s consulting firm had hand in halting Florida’s opioid investigation

Six months after hiring former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani's consulting firm, Purdue Pharma settled a Florida state investigation that had threatened to expose early illegal marketing of its blockbuster drug OxyContin, company and state records show.

5 Sep 2018

Study sheds light on how vaso-occlusive pain crises arise in sickle-cell disease

One of the most common complications of sickle-cell disease occurs when deformed red blood cells clump together, blocking tiny blood vessels and causing severe pain and swelling in the affected body parts.

4 Sep 2018

Ketamine’s role in treatment of depression: Study

The anaesthetic drug Ketamine has been shown to be beneficial in some cases of depression and suicidal ideation which have typically failed to respond to other standard antidepressant medications. A new study has explored the actual workings of ketamine in depression and found that the drug can act on the same receptors as opioid pain relievers.

30 Aug 2018

Researchers take major step forward in finding safe and non-addictive pain killer

With the support of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, scientists at Wake Forest School of Medicine have been working to find a safe, non-addictive pain killer to help fight the current opioid crisis in this country.

30 Aug 2018

New study supports motor cortex 'excitability' as cause of restless legs syndrome

Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers say new experiments using magnetic pulse brain stimulation on people with moderate to severe restless legs syndrome have added to evidence that the condition is due to excitability and hyperarousal in the part of the brain's motor cortex responsible for leg movement.

29 Aug 2018

Ketamine's acute antidepressant effect requires opioid system activation, finds study

A new study appearing online today from the American Journal of Psychiatry finds that ketamine's acute antidepressant effect requires opioid system activation, the first time that a receptor site has been shown in humans to be necessary for any antidepressant's mechanism of action.

29 Aug 2018

Stress gene increases vulnerability to developing chronic pain, study reveals

A study of more than 1,000 motor vehicle accident survivors published in JNeurosci reveals a common variant in a gene involved in the stress response that increases vulnerability to developing chronic pain. Addressing the interaction between this genetic variant and post-traumatic stress may represent a supplemental or alternative to treatment with addictive opioids.

28 Aug 2018

Suicide by opioid: New research suggests overdoses should be classified as self-harm

There has been a steady stream of headlines declaring that life expectancy in the United States is decreasing.

28 Aug 2018

Drug overdose continues to be a significant cause of death in Australia

A new report has come up with alarming numbers of deaths due to drug overdose among Australians. The report states that common sedatives and sleeping pills may be responsible for over 142 deaths each month due to their overdose.

27 Aug 2018

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What the Health?’ Opioids, epipens and health funding

The Senate is still working, well into August - something it hasn't done in years — and it’s debating the funding bill for the Department of Health and Human Services.

24 Aug 2018

Pitt professor receives NIH grant to test behavioral therapy for chronic pain in HIV patients

Living with HIV often means living with chronic pain, but behavioral therapy could offer an effective alternative to opioids.

21 Aug 2018

Christiana Care Health System successfully reduces opioid prescriptions

Before surgeon Emily Penman, M.D., begins a mastectomy or lumpectomy, her lightly sedated patient receives a nerve block, an injection of medicine to control pain after surgery.

21 Aug 2018

Study may fuel need for effective drug testing in hospital emergency departments

At a time when drug overdoses are becoming more prevalent and lethal, a new report provides a snapshot of regional illicit drug use and, for the first time, highlights the complexity of detecting and treating patients at hospital emergency departments for a severe drug-related event.

21 Aug 2018

New proposal aims to improve drug harm assessment process

A drug policy researcher is proposing a suite of changes to overhaul the Multi-Criteria Drug Harm Scale, which informs drug policies across Europe.

20 Aug 2018

Yale researchers identify racial disparities in prescribing opioids for chronic pain

Yale researchers have identified racial disparities in the treatment of patients who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain.

20 Aug 2018

Opioids News and Research

Further Reading

Study raises concerns about inappropriate opioid prescribing, lax documentation practices

FDA approves Cassipa sublingual film for maintenance treatment of opioid dependence

Researchers develop new generation of pain medications

Nursing viewpoints on opioid crisis

American Pain Society encouraged by progress toward increased funding for pain research

Rudy Giuliani’s consulting firm had hand in halting Florida’s opioid investigation

Study sheds light on how vaso-occlusive pain crises arise in sickle-cell disease

Ketamine’s role in treatment of depression: Study

Researchers take major step forward in finding safe and non-addictive pain killer

New study supports motor cortex 'excitability' as cause of restless legs syndrome

Ketamine's acute antidepressant effect requires opioid system activation, finds study

Stress gene increases vulnerability to developing chronic pain, study reveals

Suicide by opioid: New research suggests overdoses should be classified as self-harm

Drug overdose continues to be a significant cause of death in Australia

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What the Health?’ Opioids, epipens and health funding

Pitt professor receives NIH grant to test behavioral therapy for chronic pain in HIV patients

Christiana Care Health System successfully reduces opioid prescriptions

Study may fuel need for effective drug testing in hospital emergency departments

New proposal aims to improve drug harm assessment process

Yale researchers identify racial disparities in prescribing opioids for chronic pain

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