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.

Finnish researchers reveal how eating stimulates brain's endogenous opioid system

Finnish researchers have revealed how eating stimulates brain's endogenous opioid system to signal pleasure and satiety.

28 Aug 2017

Researchers use zebrafish animal model to explore drug-seeking behavior

As the opioid crisis escalates, the science behind addiction remains poorly understood. To address this need, researchers at University of Utah Health devised a system that allowed zebrafish, a small tropical fish, to self-administer doses of hydrocodone, an opioid commonly prescribed to people for pain.

26 Aug 2017

Vireo Health to join $3.8 million NIH study on medical marijuana treatment for adults with chronic pain

The National Institute of Health has awarded a $3.8 million research grant to Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System for medical marijuana research, and Vireo Health of New York will be partners in the study.

26 Aug 2017

FDA evaluating prescription opioid medications approved to treat cough in children

The United States Food and Drugs Administration (US FDA) says that parents need to be aware of the information regarding treatment of symptoms of cough and cold in their children in order to ensure their health and safety.

22 Aug 2017

Dying at home in an opioid crisis: Hospices grapple with stolen meds

Nothing seemed to help the patient — and hospice staff didn't know why. They sent home more painkillers for weeks. But the elderly woman, who had severe dementia and incurable breast cancer, kept calling out in pain.

22 Aug 2017

New vaccine could offer protection against opioid combinations

Substance abuse is a continuing problem in the U.S., particularly with heroin and other opioids, to the point of being an epidemic.

21 Aug 2017

Medicare unveils ‘skeletal’ site for hospice comparison shopping

Medicare launched a website aimed at helping families choose a hospice — but experts say it doesn’t help very much.

18 Aug 2017

Opioid crisis strains foster care system; programs aim to keep kids with mom

After Raven Mosser gave birth six years ago, she woke up to a social worker in her hospital room. Her newborn son had been born exposed to opioids — drugs she had been abusing for years. If she didn't get clean, she was at risk of losing him.

18 Aug 2017

Researchers discover synthetic compound effective at relieving neuropathic pain

A team of scientists led by chemists Stephen Martin and James Sahn at The University of Texas at Austin have discovered what they say is a powerful pain reliever that acts on a previously unknown pain pathway.

17 Aug 2017

Physicians trained at lowest-ranked medical schools write more opioid prescriptions, study finds

Physicians trained at the United States' lowest-ranked medical schools write more opioid prescriptions than physicians trained at the highest-ranked schools, according to a study by Princeton University.

14 Aug 2017

Researchers reveal stark increase in opioid-related ICU admissions and deaths

Since 2009, hospital intensive care units have witnessed a stark increase in opioid-related admissions and deaths, according to new study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center's Center for Healthcare Delivery Science.

14 Aug 2017

A long and winding road: Kicking heroin in an opioid ‘treatment desert’

Heather Menzel squirmed in her seat, unable to sleep on the Greyhound bus as it rolled through the early morning darkness toward Bakersfield, in California's Central Valley.

11 Aug 2017

Opioid crisis results in increased admissions to hospital ICUs and deaths

The opioid crisis in the United States is resulting in increased admissions to hospital intensive care units and in increased numbers of ICU deaths from opioid overdoses, according to new research published online, ahead of print in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

11 Aug 2017

People with opioid use disorder 50% more likely to get treatment after implementation of ACA

Once the Affordable Care Act was fully implemented in 2014, people who struggled with misusing opioids were 50 percent more likely to get treatment and twice as likely to have that treatment paid for by insurance than before, according to a new Drexel University study.

10 Aug 2017

Pharmaceutical companies may have strong hold on how doctors prescribe opioids, study suggests

One in twelve physicians - and nearly one in five family medicine physicians - accepted payments from pharmaceutical companies related to opioids, according to a new study out of Boston Medical Center's Grayken Center for Addiction Medicine.

10 Aug 2017

Postoperative patients use fewer opioid medications than prescribed after hernia surgery

A study by investigators from Massachusetts General Hospital and Newton-Wellesley Hospital found that patients prescribed opioid medications after inguinal (groin) hernia surgery used significantly fewer tablets than prescribed, even though they had received fewer than typically administered for such surgery.

9 Aug 2017

Opioid overdose death toll continues upward trend

According to the National Center for Health Statistics report, the overdose deaths among the persons with drug abusers in 2016 is on an upward rise that has not stopped. These rising numbers are disheartening because the intensified efforts to curb these numbers are thus seemingly not working.

8 Aug 2017

Researchers receive $3.8 million NIH grant to study medical marijuana's impact on opioid use for pain

The National Institutes of Health has awarded researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Health System a five-year, $3.8 million grant for the first long-term study to test whether medical marijuana reduces opioid use among adults with chronic pain, including those with HIV.

8 Aug 2017

Discovery of new biological pathway involved in pain processing offers hope for new treatments

The discovery of a new biological pathway involved in pain processing offers hope of using existing cancer drugs to replace the use of opioids in chronic pain treatment, according to scientists at McGill University.

8 Aug 2017

Study develops correction methods to provide more accurate estimates of opioid, heroin deaths

Although opioid and heroin deaths have been rising dramatically in the U.S., the magnitude of the epidemic varies from state to state, as does the relative proportion of opioid vs heroin poisonings.

7 Aug 2017

Opioids News and Research

Further Reading

Finnish researchers reveal how eating stimulates brain's endogenous opioid system

Researchers use zebrafish animal model to explore drug-seeking behavior

Vireo Health to join $3.8 million NIH study on medical marijuana treatment for adults with chronic pain

FDA evaluating prescription opioid medications approved to treat cough in children

Dying at home in an opioid crisis: Hospices grapple with stolen meds

New vaccine could offer protection against opioid combinations

Medicare unveils ‘skeletal’ site for hospice comparison shopping

Opioid crisis strains foster care system; programs aim to keep kids with mom

Researchers discover synthetic compound effective at relieving neuropathic pain

Physicians trained at lowest-ranked medical schools write more opioid prescriptions, study finds

Researchers reveal stark increase in opioid-related ICU admissions and deaths

A long and winding road: Kicking heroin in an opioid ‘treatment desert’

Opioid crisis results in increased admissions to hospital ICUs and deaths

People with opioid use disorder 50% more likely to get treatment after implementation of ACA

Pharmaceutical companies may have strong hold on how doctors prescribe opioids, study suggests

Postoperative patients use fewer opioid medications than prescribed after hernia surgery

Opioid overdose death toll continues upward trend

Researchers receive $3.8 million NIH grant to study medical marijuana's impact on opioid use for pain

Discovery of new biological pathway involved in pain processing offers hope for new treatments

Study develops correction methods to provide more accurate estimates of opioid, heroin deaths

Achieving and maintaining ISO 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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