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.

Artificial intelligence tools speed up the process of identifying people who inject drugs

An automated process that combines natural language processing and machine learning identified people who inject drugs (PWID) in electronic health records more quickly and accurately than current methods that rely on manual record reviews.

22 Sep 2022

Patients with late-stage knee OA incur high costs for nonoperative treatments before total knee arthroplasty

In the year before total knee arthroplasty (TKA), patients incur considerable costs for nonoperative treatments and other procedures for osteoarthritis (OA) – raising questions about the value of those procedures, reports a study in The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery.

22 Sep 2022

Doctors rush to use Supreme Court ruling to escape opioid charges

Dr. Nelson Onaro conceded last summer that he'd written illegal prescriptions, although he said he was thinking only of his patients. From a tiny, brick clinic in Oklahoma, he doled out hundreds of opioid pills and dozens of fentanyl patches with no legitimate medical purpose.

19 Sep 2022

Study finds spike in the "Years of Life Lost" among adolescents during COVID-19 pandemic

The first year of the COVID-19 pandemic saw a 113% increase in the "Years of Life Lost" among adolescents and young people in the United States due to unintentional drug overdose, according to researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine.

13 Sep 2022

New long-term opioid use associated with a heightened risk of death, study finds

New long term use of opioids to quell pain after lung cancer surgery is linked to a 40% heightened risk of death from any cause within the next 2 years, finds research published online in the journal Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine.

13 Sep 2022

Cannabis legalization likely to reduce conventional pharmaceutical sales by billions of dollars

Researchers from California Polytechnic State University and The University of New Mexico find that stock market investors predict cannabis legalization will reduce conventional pharmaceutical sales by billions of dollars.

2 Sep 2022

EEG tests reveal fentanyl's effects on the brain

Fentanyl is used to supplement sedation and to relieve severe pain during and after surgery, but it's also one of the deadliest drugs of the opioid epidemic.

30 Aug 2022

Review of ERAS programs in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery shows improved patient outcomes

Following Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols designed to minimize surgical stress results in improved patient recovery and satisfaction, reduced postoperative complications, and shorter hospital stays, according to a review of ERAS programs in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery by UT Southwestern researchers.

29 Aug 2022

What are the clinical characteristics and complications of patients with a monkeypox infection?

Researchers described the clinical characteristics and complications of monkeypox virus infections.

29 Aug 2022

A needle exchange project modeled on urban efforts aims to save lives in rural Nevada

Richard Cusolito believes he's saving lives by distributing clean syringes and needles to people who use drugs in this rural area of northeastern Nevada — but he knows some residents disagree.

24 Aug 2022

Medical cannabis patients may not be getting consistent guidance from clinicians, analysis suggests

Due to a lack of publicly available data, understanding what products medical cannabis patients use for various conditions has mostly come from survey responses.

22 Aug 2022

Medical cannabis used for chronic pain linked with elevated risk of heart rhythm disorders

Cannabis prescribed for chronic pain is associated with an elevated risk of heart rhythm disorders, according to research presented at ESC Congress 2022.

22 Aug 2022

Out-of-pocket costs may prevent uninsured Americans from accessing naloxone

The cost of buying the opioid antidote naloxone is out of reach for many uninsured Americans, a hurdle that may keep the treatment from saving more people who overdose on opioids, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

19 Aug 2022

Key gene sheds light on how people develop tolerance to pain-relievers over time

UF Scripps Biomedical Research scientists have a discovered a key gene that is shedding light on how people develop tolerance to pain-relievers over time, a problem that raises risk of addiction and overdose.

18 Aug 2022

Public health agencies adapt covid lessons to curb overdoses, STDs, and gun violence

Shannan Piccolo walked into a hotel with a tote bag full of Narcan and a speech about how easy it is to use the medicine that can reverse opioid overdoses.

17 Aug 2022

Study determines the impact of withholding nitrous oxide for labor analgesia

Birthing women denied nitrous oxide ('laughing gas') to relieve labor pain during the COVID-19 pandemic have turned to opioids instead, without any adverse outcomes for mother or child, according to a new study by Australian clinicians.

16 Aug 2022

Methamphetamine use is pervasive and drives overdoses in rural communities across the U.S.

Methamphetamine remains a stubbornly prevalent illicit substance in large swaths of rural America, according to a new study by researchers at Oregon Health & Science University and other institutions.

15 Aug 2022

Electrical body stimulation combined with sound activates the brain's somatosensory cortex

A University of Minnesota Twin Cities-led team has found that electrical stimulation of the body combined with sound activates the brain's somatosensory or "tactile" cortex, increasing the potential for using the technique to treat chronic pain and other sensory disorders.

11 Aug 2022

They call it ‘tranq’ — and it’s making street drugs even more dangerous

Approaching a van that distributes supplies for safer drug use in Greenfield, Massachusetts, a man named Kyle noticed an alert about xylazine.