When communities face epidemics of drug abuse, a wave of infectious diseases often follows, including hepatitis and HIV. A new federally-funded program in southern West Virginia, led by West Virginia University, will seek to interrupt that cycle.
While marijuana use amongst youth remains stable, youth admission to substance abuse treatment facilities has increased, according to new research from Binghamton University, State University of New York.
Access to counseling for patients, mentoring for physicians could help increase use, survey says
Researchers have shown that a new genetic test could potentially help stem the tide of the opioid epidemic by predicting which patients are at risk of abusing prescription opioids. These findings were presented for the first time at the 69th AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo in San Diego.
At the 69th AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo—the premier global conference and exhibit for laboratory medicine—visionaries in the field will illuminate the pioneering research and technology paving the way for better clinical testing and patient care. From July 30–August 3 in San Diego, the meeting will feature more than 200 talks on a broad range of timely healthcare topics. Highlights of these include plenaries that explore transforming biology using CRISPR engineering and new applications for DNA sequencing; preserving fertility in young people with cancer; how clinical testing can help solve public health crises; and a session that uncovers the precision diagnostics that are creating a digital health revolution.
The use of medication to treat attention deficient hyperactivity disorder is linked to significantly lower risk for substance use problems in adolescents and adults with ADHD, according to a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry and led by Indiana University.
In a first-of its kind study, researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai found an elevated risk of intellectual disability (ID) in children born to mothers treated with antidepressants, but the risk was not statistically significant and is likely due to other factors, including parental age and the parents’ psychiatric history.
Johns Hopkins scientists report that data collected over five years by volunteers who tested pills free of charge at music festivals and raves across the United States suggest that at least some recreational users of illegal drugs may choose not to take them if tests show the pills are adulterated or fake.
Most states mandate that domestic violence offenders complete some type of batterer intervention program, but the success rates are often quite low. That is why the results of a new method developed by an Iowa State University professor are so promising.
The majority of reproductive-age and pregnant women who use opioids for non-medical purposes also use at least one other substance, ranging from nicotine or alcohol to cocaine, according to a University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health analysis. It was the first to look at use of multiple substances in a nationally representative group of US women age 18 to 44.
A new study reinforces long-held suspicions that the brain chemical serotonin, a molecule usually associated with mood, appetite and libido, makes a direct contribution to the actions of cocaine. Scientists can now clearly see details of how the brain uses serotonin not just to regulate mood, but also to drive both rapid and long-lasting changes in the brain. They suspect these changes may contribute to the brain modifications that ultimately trap users in an addicted state.
Unaccompanied homeless youth, especially females, have high rates of sexual and physical victimization – both before and after leaving home. These findings and others will be shared at the 40th annual scientific meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA) in Denver June 24-28.
University of Iowa researchers have identified a brain region involved in cocaine addiction. The findings could lead to targeted drugs or improved behavioral treatments for substance addiction, including opioid dependency. Findings published in the Journal of Neuroscience.
TLC4Teens.org offers a vetted directory of educational websites and hotlines for children and their parents
A new Consensus Document from the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) provides practical, evidence-based recommendations on the use of drug testing for identification, diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of patients with or at risk for substance use disorders (SUDs). The document appears in the May/June issue of the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of ASAM. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
Adults who smoke marijuana often cut back after becoming parents — but they don’t necessarily quit.
They have what most would want – affluent upwardly mobile parents, living in comfortable homes in the suburbs, going to an elite high school and being groomed for the nation’s best colleges. But these “privileged” American high schoolers can be at high risk for problematic substance abuse across early adulthood, according to new research from Arizona State University.
About 1 in 1,111 patients who undergo urologic surgery experience opioid dependence or overdose, a Loyola Medicine study has found. Patients at highest risk were younger, underwent inpatient surgery, had longer hospital stays, were on Medicaid or Medicare or had a history of depression or COPD.
Researchers surveyed individuals entering NYC EDM parties about their drug usage, with almost one out of ten participants who reported no “bath salt” use as per the gate question then reported use of one or more drugs in this class, such as methylone, providing evidence of under-reporting.
A new position statement on substance use by nurses and nursing students emphasizes "alternative-to-discipline" (ATD) approaches—including specialized treatment and a pathway for return to practice, according to a position paper in the April/June issue of Journal of Addictions Nursing (JAN), the official journal of the International Nurses Society on Addictions (IntNSA). The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
As substance abuse continues to be a health concern in colleges and universities across the U.S., a social scientist from the University of Missouri has found that female student-athletes who volunteer in their communities and engage in helping behaviors are less likely to partake in dangerous alcohol and marijuana use.
As a primary point of contact for patients receiving anesthesia, procedural sedation, and pain management services, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) are answering the Surgeon General’s call to end the opioid crisis with a more holistic approach to pain management designed to reduce dependence on prescription medications and offering patients greater transparency, understanding and engagement in their own care.
As a physician, I urge caution as we cut back opioids
Large portions of the Southeast don’t have enough opioid treatment programs to match their high rates of opioid use disorder.
Rutgers Expands Treatment for Substance Abuse and Mood Disorders
Heroin use is associated with excessive histone acetylation, an epigenetic process that regulates gene expression, and more years of drug use correlate with higher levels of hyperacetylation, according to research conducted at The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published in the journal Biological Psychiatry.
Opioids, including heroin and prescription drugs, killed 33,000-plus people in 2015, more than any year on record, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. President Trump’s proposed budget aims to bring a $500 million increase in funding for prevention and treatment, but that amount isn’t enough to address the crisis, says an expert on substance use disorder treatment at Washington University in St.
States where Medicaid coverage was expanded under the Affordable Care Act have had a significant increase in prescribing of buprenorphine—a medication that plays an important role in addressing the opioid epidemic, reports a study in the April issue of Medical Care. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
Addiction medicine expert Petros Levounis says a maintenance treatment that combines medication with behavioral treatment and recovery support gives patients the best chance of sustainable recovery
Dr. Chaudhry (FSMB President and CEO) sits down with Dr. Daniel Gifford, Immediate Past Chairman of the FSMB Board of Directors and Chair of the Workgroup on FSMB’s Model Policy on the Use of Opioid Analgesics in the Treatment of Chronic Pain. Drs. Chaudhry and Gifford discuss the work of FSMB's Workgroups as they prepare for the future of medical regulation and assisting state medical boards in their mission to protect the public.
People with intermittent explosive disorder (IED)—a condition marked by frequent physical or verbal outbursts—are at five times greater risk for abusing substances such as alcohol, tobacco and marijuana than those who don’t display frequent aggressive behavior, according to a new study by researchers from the University of Chicago.
More than two in five people receiving buprenorphine, a drug commonly used to treat opioid addiction, are also given prescriptions for other opioid painkillers – and two-thirds are prescribed opioids after their treatment is complete, a new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health study suggests.
A tiny snail may offer an alternative to opioids for pain relief. Scientists at the University of Utah have found a compound that blocks pain by targeting a pathway not associated with opioids. Research in rodents indicates that the benefits continue long after the compound have cleared the body.
Nearly 70 percent of prescription opioid medications kept in homes with children are not stored safely, a new study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health finds.
The average news consumer might be surprised to learn that the economic costs of alcohol abuse far exceed those related to illegal drug use. In California, alcohol abuse cost $129 billion in 2010, $3,450 per California resident. That was almost three times the $44 billion bill for illicit drug use. The largest cost contributors were mortality, impaired driving, and violence. The costs varied greatly from city to city and county to county.
At a glance: New research shows great variation among clinicians’ opioid prescribing practices and links physician prescription patterns to patients’ risk for subsequent long-term opioid use. Being treated by an emergency room physician who prescribes opioids more frequently increases a patient’s risk of long-term opioid use and other adverse outcomes. The results suggest that differences in clinicians’ prescribing habits may be helping to fuel the opioid epidemic sweeping the United States.
Taking one oxycodone tablet together with even a modest amount of alcohol increases the risk of a potentially life-threatening side effect known as respiratory depression, which causes breathing to become extremely shallow or stop altogether, reports a study published in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology.
A number of animal studies and a small human pilot study have revealed that cannabinoids, extracts of cannabis legally sold as medical marijuana, could reduce cravings and ease withdrawal symptoms in heroin users.
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found that deep brain stimulation (DBS) can greatly reduce the compulsion to use heroin in standard rat models of addiction.
Nationwide, the mortality rate from deaths caused by drugs, alcohol and suicide rose 52 percent from 2000 to 2014, according to new research from the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire. Most of the increase was driven by a surge in prescription opioid and heroin overdoses.
Temple/Wedge Center of Excellence Funded by $500,000 State Grant
For people with opioid use disorder receiving medication treatment with buprenorphine, a telepsychiatry approach—using videoconferencing as an alternative to in-person group sessions—provides similar clinical outcomes, reports a study in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
A study of more than 100,000 surgical cases at University of Virginia Health System found patients’ pain scores improved even as doctors gave fewer opioids. As health officials across the U.S. look for ways to combat a opioid addiction crisis, UVA researchers believe their findings highlight one way to address the problem.
In a survey of almost 2,000 people who said they had had a past negative experience when taking psilocybin-containing "magic mushrooms," Johns Hopkins researchers say that more than 10 percent believed their worst "bad trip" had put themselves or others in harm's way, and a substantial majority called their most distressing episode one of the top 10 biggest challenges of their lives.
A wide range of pre-existing psychiatric and behavioral conditions and the use of psychoactive drugs could be important risk factors leading to long-term use of opioid pain medications, reports a study in PAIN®, the official publication of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP). The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.
For the first time, researchers have determined the potential cost and benefits of opening a supervised injection facility for people who inject drugs in the United States. The study, released today, found that a single facility in San Francisco could generate $3.5 million in savings.
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