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.

Five researchers selected to receive 2015 Avant-Garde Award for HIV/AIDS Research

With proposals ranging from innovative therapies to the development of unique organoid models of the brain, five scientists have been selected to receive the 2015 Avant-Garde Award for HIV/AIDS Research from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health. The five scientists will each receive $500,000 per year for five years to support their research.

10 Feb 2015

Policymakers need to look beyond painkiller abuse to reduce opioid overdose deaths, say researchers

According to researchers at Brandeis University, the University of North Florida and Johns Hopkins University, policymakers must look beyond painkiller abuse, also called non-medical use, in their efforts to reduce opioid overdose deaths.

5 Feb 2015

Study could lead to potential drug treatment for fighting addiction

A research team led by the University of Colorado Boulder has discovered a mechanism in the brain that is key to making cocaine seem pleasurable, a finding that could lead to a drug treatment for fighting addiction.

5 Feb 2015

Trust for America's Health supports President's proposal to end sequestration

The following is a statement from Jeffrey Levi, PhD, executive director of the Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and chair of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health.

4 Feb 2015

Study findings could offer roadmap for preventing deaths from drug overdoses

Results from a new study show that participants in drug overdose education programs tend to be parents (mostly mothers) who provide financial support for their son/daughter, have daily contact with their loved one, have applied for court-mandated treatment and have witnessed an overdose.

2 Feb 2015

Older users of opioids more likely to become victim of homicide, shows study

Older users of opioids such as heroin are 27 times more likely to become a victim of homicide than the general population, a University of Manchester study of almost 200,000 users has found.

30 Jan 2015

New experimental study shows immunotherapy can reduce acute effects of heroin

Immunotherapy could have a place in the treatment of substance abuse in the future. A specific antibody can reduce the acute effects of heroin, according to a new experimental study at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

21 Jan 2015

European countries implement ATOME project to study improved access to essential painkillers

Governments in 12 European countries are to implement the recommendations of research into why more patients are not receiving essential painkillers.

15 Jan 2015

CET ‘feasible’ in schizophrenia patients with substance misuse

Patients with schizophrenia and comorbid substance abuse diagnoses are able to benefit from cognitive enhancement therapy, preliminary research suggests.

7 Jan 2015

Study finds link between contraband cigarette and illicit drug use among teens in Canada

A University of Alberta economics professor has discovered a link between contraband cigarette use and illicit drug use among Canadian teens.

17 Dec 2014

National survey shows decrease in alcohol, cigarette and illicit drug use among U.S. teens

A national survey of students in U.S. middle schools and high schools shows some important improvements in levels of substance use.

16 Dec 2014

Heroin use impacts HIV disease progression

Researchers at Yale and Boston University and their Russian collaborators have found that occasional heroin use by HIV-positive patients may be particularly harmful to the immune system and worsens HIV disease, compared to persistent or no heroin use.

15 Dec 2014

Month-long residential program helps young adults stay drug-free

Residential treatment may be an appropriate first-line option for young adults who are dependent on opioid drugs - including prescription painkillers and heroin - and may result in higher levels of abstinence than does the outpatient treatment that is currently the standard of care.

21 Nov 2014

Prescription opioids involved in 67.8% of nationwide ED visits in 2010, find researchers

Researchers from Rhode Island and The Miriam hospitals and the Stanford University School of Medicine have found that prescription opioids, including methadone, were involved in 67.8 percent of (or over 135,971 visits to) nationwide emergency department (ED) visits in 2010, with the highest proportion of opioid overdoses occurring in the South.

12 Nov 2014

Study identifies multiple risk behaviors associated with gun possession, violence among youths

A fatal high school shooting in October near Seattle reignited a long-running national debate about gun safety, mental illness and minors. An important major study, to be published on Nov. 5 by researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and Teachers College, Columbia University, contributes new insights to the discussion, including the finding that "multiple risk behaviors, beyond more commonly discussed indicators of poor mental health…are associated with gun possession among youth."

6 Nov 2014

Even brief workouts can reduce risk of relapse during meth withdrawal

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found that even brief workouts can reduce the risk of relapse in rats withdrawing from methamphetamine. In addition, the team found that exercise affected the neurons in a brain region that had never before been associated with meth withdrawal, suggesting a new direction for drug development.

5 Nov 2014

State highlights: Health care takes center stage in debates in Maine, Arizona, Missouri

The three candidates for governor clashed Tuesday in their final debate, highlighting their differences on a wide range of issues, including health care and welfare. Partisan sparks flew early and often between Republican Gov. Paul LePage and Democratic U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, who are running in a dead heat in the race, far ahead of independent Eliot Cutler, two weeks before Maine residents go to the polls (10/21).

24 Oct 2014

Buprenorphine maintenance therapy better than detoxification for treating prescription opioid dependence

For treating patients with prescription opioid dependence in primary care, buprenorphine maintenance therapy is superior to detoxification, according to a new study by Yale School of Medicine researchers published in the Oct. 20 issue of JAMA Internal Medicine.

21 Oct 2014

Loyola University Health System to hold medication take-back day

Loyola University Health System will partner with the Cook County Sheriff's Department to hold a medication take-back day.