Feature Channels: Drugs and Drug Abuse

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Released: 13-Nov-2018 10:05 AM EST
Georgetown University Medical Center Selects Nora Volkow for Highest Honor
Georgetown University Medical Center

Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) will present Nora Volkow, MD, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a part of the National Institutes of Health, with its highest honor, the Cura Personalis Award, at a ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 13 at 4:00 p.m.

Released: 9-Nov-2018 2:05 PM EST
In Buffalo emergency departments, a better way to treat opioid use disorder
University at Buffalo

An innovative, cost-effective program in Western New York provides medication-assisted treatment to opioid use disorder patients in emergency departments (EDs) and rapidly transitions them into long-term treatment within about 48 hours.

Released: 9-Nov-2018 12:05 PM EST
Escalating Opioid Dose Is 'Critical Signal' for Increased Mortality
Wolters Kluwer Health: Lippincott

Rising rates and doses of prescription opioids may be a warning sign of an increased risk of death – even for patients not recognized as having opioid use disorder (OUD), reports a study in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

2-Nov-2018 2:30 PM EDT
People with Hepatitis C Who Actively Inject Illegal Drugs Have High Rates of Hepatitis C Treatment Adherence and Cure
American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD)

SAN FRANCISCO – Preliminary data from a new study presented this week at The Liver Meeting® – held by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases – found that people who inject drugs who are infected with the hepatitis C virus have high rates of hepatitis C treatment adherence (completion of their treatment), and sustained virologic response. Based on these findings, researchers conclude these patients should be included in HCV treatment programs.

Released: 7-Nov-2018 3:05 PM EST
The Medical Minute: Naloxone rescue kits now being prescribed alongside high-dose prescriptions
Penn State Health

Doctors now regularly prescribe drugs that reverse the effects of opioids in tandem with high-dose prescriptions of the painkillers.

5-Nov-2018 12:05 PM EST
Surgery patients use only 1/4 of the opioids a surgeon gives -- but the bigger the prescription, the more they take
Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan

Many surgeons write prescriptions for opioid pain medications four times larger than what patients will actually use after common operations, a study shows. And the size of that prescription may be the most important factor in how many opioid pills the patient takes – outweighing pain scores, the intensity of their operation and more.

Released: 7-Nov-2018 9:00 AM EST
Quit with the Great American Smokeout
Monday Campaigns

To support the the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout, Quit & Stay Quit Monday, an initiative of The Monday Campaigns and the Institute for Global Tobacco Control at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, are introducing a new “Monday Quit Kit” for individuals and tobacco cessation professionals that can help quitters stay on track over the long haul.

1-Nov-2018 12:30 PM EDT
New Study Indicates Opioid Overdose Reversal Products Chemically Stable Well Past Expiration Date
American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS)

A widely used naloxone nasal spray (NNS) and naloxone injection (NIJ), otherwise known as Narcan® and Evzio®, which are administered to prevent opioid overdose deaths, were found to be chemically stable up for at least ten months and beyond one year of the expiration date, respectively.

   
2-Nov-2018 2:05 PM EDT
Opioid Gene Variant in Adolescents Reduces Reward, May Increase Later Substance Abuse Risk
Georgetown University Medical Center

Adolescents with a particular variant of an opioid receptor gene have less response in a part of prefrontal cortex that evaluates rewards, compared to those with the other version of the gene, say researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC). The study will be presented Nov. 5 at Neuroscience 2018, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience (abstract #7517).

Released: 2-Nov-2018 10:05 AM EDT
Study Reveals Pregnancy-Associated Deaths Involving Opioids More Than Doubled
Stony Brook University

In a study of pregnancy-associated deaths of women from 2007 to 2016, researchers found that mortality involving opioids either during pregnancy or up to one year post-pregnancy more than doubled during that time.

Released: 1-Nov-2018 12:10 PM EDT
Cluster of Cocaine-Fentanyl Overdoses in Philadelphia Underscores Need for More “Test Strips” and Rapid Response
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

Penn Medicine emergency department physicians are calling for more readily available testing strips to identify the presence of fentanyl in patients experiencing a drug overdose, and a rapid, coordinated response among health care providers and city agencies to help curb overdoses and identify high potency high risk drugs.

26-Oct-2018 9:00 PM EDT
Can attending a top high school reduce teens’ marijuana abuse?
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Health Sciences

Students from low-income neighborhoods who attended a high-achieving school were less likely to abuse marijuana than those who weren’t offered admission. By 11th grade, the risk of misusing the drug was cut by half in boys at top-performing schools.

22-Oct-2018 8:00 AM EDT
Researchers Examine Prescription Opioid Use in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease
American Society of Nephrology (ASN)

• Individuals with kidney disease have a higher likelihood of using prescription opioids, and the prevalence of prescription opioid use in the chronic kidney disease population has increased in recent years. • Certain factors are associated with opioid drug use in patients with chronic kidney disease. • Results from the study will be presented at ASN Kidney Week 2018 October 23–October 28 at the San Diego Convention Center.

Released: 26-Oct-2018 4:30 PM EDT
Upstate Study Finds Misuse of Stimulant Medication When Snorted, Injected Has Most Severe Health Consequences
SUNY Upstate Medical University

A study, which evaluated the prevalence and clinical consequences of prescription amphetamine (AMP) misuse among adolescents and adults, found severe medical outcomes occur when people snort or inject stimulant medication.

22-Oct-2018 12:05 PM EDT
AJPH December Issue: Infants and Sugary Drinks, Top 20 China Health Challenges, Aging in Netherlands, Mass. Opioid Use Increasing
American Public Health Association (APHA)

In this issue, find research on infant sugary drink consumption, China's top 20 health challenges, aging and healthy years in the Netherlands, and increasing opioid use in Massachusetts

Released: 23-Oct-2018 9:45 AM EDT
High Rate of Drug/Alcohol-Related Deaths in WTC Survivors
Wolters Kluwer Health: Lippincott

People who were exposed to the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center (WTC) have elevated rates of alcohol- or drug-related death, reports a study in the October Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

17-Oct-2018 10:30 AM EDT
Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup: Most Americans Would Choose an Alternative to Opioids Following Surgery
Mayo Clinic

While nearly all Americans say they would choose an alternative to opioid pain relievers following surgery, few patients are talking to their health care provider about it, according to the Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup.

Released: 22-Oct-2018 4:05 PM EDT
$4.5 Million From NIH Will Help Find Solutions to ‘Chemo Brain’ Symptoms and Opioid Addiction
Saint Louis University Medical Center

Pain researcher Daniela Salvemini, Ph.D., will embark on two new research projects, studying chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment, or “chemo brain,” symptoms and unwanted side effects of opioids.

17-Oct-2018 1:00 PM EDT
Patients who Undergo Major Operations without Opioids Have Shorter Hospital Stays
American College of Surgeons (ACS)

A treatment protocol that sends people home after colorectal operations without any opioids to manage their pain leads to shorter hospital stays.

Released: 18-Oct-2018 9:55 AM EDT
Medicating Distress: Risky Sedative Prescriptions for Older Adults Vary Widely
Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan

A new study shows wide variation in prescriptions of sedative drugs, called benzodiazepines, to people with Medicare coverage. Some counties, especially in southern and rural western states, had three times the level of sedative prescribing as others. The study also highlights gaps at the level of individual prescribers: Some primary care providers prescribed sedatives more than six times more often than their peers.

16-Oct-2018 9:00 AM EDT
Adding Flavors to E-Cigarette Liquids Changes Chemistry, Creates Irritants
Duke Health

New research from Duke and Yale universities shows flavorings are transforming more than marketing. The chemical additives react to e-liquid, or e-juice, creating new compounds that could trigger irritation and inflammation when inhaled.

Released: 17-Oct-2018 1:45 PM EDT
Adolescent THC Exposure Can Have Long-Term Effects on Adult Brain in Neuronal Systems Linked to Psychiatric Risk
Mount Sinai Health System

Mount Sinai Researchers Find Long-Term Structural and Gene Expression Disturbances in Adult Brains in Association with Adolescent THC Exposure; These Changes Mimic Aspects of Psychosis Risk

Released: 17-Oct-2018 1:40 PM EDT
National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Allows for Safe Disposal of Unused Medications
Northwestern Medicine

Northwestern Medicine and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago are coming together with the Drug Enforcement Administration to host collection sites for National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 27.

Released: 4-Oct-2018 1:05 PM EDT
Building a public library of bacteria to facilitate drug discovery research
University of Illinois Chicago

Approximately $1.7 million in new funding from the National Institutes of Health will enable a multidisciplinary team of University of Illinois at Chicago researchers to build a reference library of bacteria to help scientists quickly identify bacterial strains and analyze their disease-fighting potential.

Released: 4-Oct-2018 12:05 PM EDT
WVU researchers focus on school-based healthcare in Appalachia
West Virginia University

Simon Haeder and Sara Anderson have been selected to participate in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Interdisciplinary Research Leaders Program.

Released: 4-Oct-2018 11:05 AM EDT
American Association of Nurse Anesthetists Applauds Congress for Passage of Comprehensive Opioid Package
American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology

The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) commends the U.S. Congress for its passage of a comprehensive, bipartisan package to support the prevention and treatment of opioid addiction in America.

Released: 3-Oct-2018 11:05 AM EDT
Low Self-Esteem Connected to Greater Risk for Opioid Use
Binghamton University, State University of New York

Health, family and romance problems appear to be the particular life stressors most associated with increased risk for using opioids to cope, and individuals with low self-esteem appear to be at risk for these connections, according to a new paper including researchers at Binghamton University, State University at New York.

Released: 1-Oct-2018 12:05 PM EDT
WVU School of Public Health, Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute collaborate to combat state’s opioid epidemic
West Virginia University

In October, Garrett Moran, Ph.D., will join RNI as the associate director of services and policy innovation.

Released: 28-Sep-2018 5:05 PM EDT
House Advances ASA-Supported Legislation to Reduce Opioid Use in the Surgical Setting
American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA)

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 6, the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, legislation to address the opioid crisis, which includes provisions supported by the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) to advance opioid reducing initiatives in the surgical setting.

Released: 28-Sep-2018 10:05 AM EDT
Medicaid Expansions Linked to Slower Rises in Overdose Deaths
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

In a study examining the potential impact of 2001-02 Medicaid expansions by Arizona, Maine and New York – expansions that occurred just prior to the rise in overdose mortality nationwide – researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found that from the time of these expansions through 2008, overdose mortality rates (mostly driven by fatal overdoses of opioids) rose significantly less in the expansion states than in non-expansion states.

Released: 27-Sep-2018 9:05 AM EDT
School of Social Work receives federal funding to address opioid addiction in Appalachia
West Virginia University - Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

Social workers at West Virginia University are leading the way in opioid treatment and prevention in West Virginia, where overdose rates are the highest in the U.S.

Released: 24-Sep-2018 8:00 AM EDT
Misuse of Stimulants Remains a Top Concern on College Campuses, Survey Finds
Ohio State University

Almost 16 percent of college students say they misuse prescription stimulants, often in the quest for better grades, a new survey of U.S. undergraduate, graduate and professional students has found.

   
Released: 21-Sep-2018 3:30 PM EDT
National Recognition for Einstein Montefiore Addiction Specialist
Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Dr. Chinazo Cunningham, M.D., M.S., a New York City-based expert in opioid use disorder will serve on a national board advising the CDC on best approaches to address the nation's opioid epidemic.

17-Sep-2018 8:00 AM EDT
Researchers Successfully Train Employees to Respond to Opioid Overdose, Administer Naloxone
New York University

A small study shows that business managers and staff—such as those running coffee shops and fast-food restaurants—can be trained to reverse opioid overdoses, which are known to occur in public bathrooms.

Released: 20-Sep-2018 3:40 PM EDT
Full, but Still Feasting: Mouse Study Reveals How the Urge to Eat Overpowers the Signal to Stop
Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan

A new study explores the mystery of what drives eating past the point of fullness, at the most basic level in the brain. It shows that two tiny clusters of cells battle for control of feeding behavior -- and the one that drives eating overpowers the one that says to stop. It also shows that the brain’s own natural opioid system gets involved – and that blocking it with the drug naloxone can stop over-eating.

   
16-Sep-2018 8:00 PM EDT
Drug Overdose Epidemic Has Been Growing Exponentially For Decades
Health Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh

Death rates from drug overdoses in the U.S. have been on an exponential growth curve that began at least 15 years before the mid-1990s surge in opioid prescribing, suggesting that overdose death rates may continue along this same historical growth trajectory for years to come.

Released: 17-Sep-2018 7:05 PM EDT
American Society of Anesthesiologists Applauds Senate Passage of Opioid Legislation
American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA)

The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) applauds the Senate for the passage of the Opioid Crisis Response Act (“OCRA”), a bill that includes several bipartisan provisions supported by ASA that will help address the nation’s ongoing opioid abuse epidemic. In particular, ASA commends the Senate for the inclusion of the provision that would provide technical assistance and grants to hospitals and other acute care settings on alternatives to opioids for pain management. This will support the development of best practices on the use of alternatives to opioids; technologies or techniques to identify patients at risk for opioid use disorder; disseminating information on the use of alternatives to opioids; and collecting data and reporting on health outcomes associated with the use of alternatives to opioids. ASA was pleased to coordinate with policymakers on this concept.

14-Sep-2018 1:05 PM EDT
Gene Therapy via Skin Protects Mice From Lethal Cocaine Doses
University of Chicago Medical Center

A study in Nature Biomedical Engineering shows that skin stem cells, modified via CRISPR and transplanted back to donor mice, can protect addicted mice from cocaine-seeking and overdose.

Released: 13-Sep-2018 2:00 PM EDT
Cocaine Addiction Traced to Increase in Number of Orexin Neurons
Rutgers University-New Brunswick

A study by researchers at Rutgers Brain Health Institute identifies a promising avenue for treating addiction and clues to why people in recovery relapse

12-Sep-2018 1:00 PM EDT
NEJM Perspective: How State Attorneys General Can Protect Public Health
New York University

To protect the public from harmful products, legal action can be used against industries, one example of which—a settlement with the tobacco industry—offers useful lessons for confronting several of today’s public health epidemics.

Released: 12-Sep-2018 3:30 PM EDT
Poorest Americans Most Likely to Have Used Prescription Opioids — and Most Users View Opioids Positively
University at Buffalo

Among older Americans, the poorest are the most likely to have used prescription opioids, according to a University at Buffalo study providing new insights into unexplored contours of the opioid crisis. The study also raises important questions about access to pain management options for the disadvantaged in the current climate of the opioid epidemic.

   
Released: 12-Sep-2018 9:40 AM EDT
New Yorkers Who Use Drugs Report Changing Behaviors to Avoid Overdose
New York University

People who use drugs in New York City have adjusted their behaviors to avoid overdose, finds a study by the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research at NYU.

6-Sep-2018 3:45 PM EDT
Clinical Need Absent, Unclear in Nearly 30 Percent of Outpatient Opioid Prescriptions
Harvard Medical School

Nearly 30 percent of outpatient opioid prescriptions in the United States lack documented clinical reasons to justify dispensing the drugs.

7-Sep-2018 10:05 AM EDT
1 in 4 Older Adults Prescribed a Benzodiazepine Goes on to Risky Long-Term Use, Study Finds
Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan

They may start as well-intentioned efforts to calm anxiety, improve sleep or ease depression. But prescriptions for sedatives known as benzodiazepines may lead to long-term use among one in four older adults who receive them, according to new research. That’s despite warnings against long-term use of these drugs, especially among older people.

6-Sep-2018 5:05 AM EDT
Screening Strategies and Methods for Better Off-Target Liability Prediction and Identification of Small-Molecule Pharmaceuticals
SLAS

A new review explores how improved safety screening strategies and methods are improving the pharmaceutical discovery and development process. The authors outline several fundamental methods of the current drug screening processes and emerging techniques and technologies that promise to improve molecule selection. In addition, the authors discuss integrated screening strategies and provide examples of advanced screening paradigms.

   


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