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.

Conservative Indiana adopted needle exchanges but still faces local resistance

Back when Cody Gabbard was shooting heroin, his only significant human contact was with others in the throes of addiction, who only cared to see him when he had drugs.

12 Feb 2020

Telemedicine can help pregnant women struggling with opioids

Sarah, a military veteran living on the coast of South Carolina, knew she had a problem. The opioids prescribed for her pain were becoming a headache of their own.

11 Feb 2020

Researchers examine the effects of yoga, tai chi, and qigong on chronic low back pain

It's a pain. About 80 percent of adults in the United States will experience lower back pain at some point. Treating back pain typically involves medication, including opioids, surgery, therapy and self-care options.

6 Feb 2020

Higher opioid doses do not seem to improve pain, study finds

Increasing chronic pain patients' opioid prescription doses does not seem to improve pain, according to a Veterans Affairs study.

5 Feb 2020

Re-engineered plant compound reduces morphine-seeking behaviors in mice

The abuse of prescription and illegal opioids, such as morphine and heroin, is a major problem in the U.S., with devastating public health, economic and social consequences.

5 Feb 2020

Magnetically levitated plasma proteins could vastly improve diagnosis of diseases

Researchers at Michigan State University's Precision Health Program have helped develop a fascinating new method for detecting the density of proteins in the blood - a method that could vastly improve the rate at which diseases are detected and diagnosed.

5 Feb 2020

Good rehab is hard to find

Pattie Vargas saw with frightening clarity that her son Joel, 25 at the time, had a life-threatening drug problem. He came home one day in 2007 "high as a kite," went to bed and slept four days straight, Vargas, now a 65-year-old resident of Vacaville, California, recalls.

5 Feb 2020

Study provides key insights into pregnant women's use of marijuana

As the use of marijuana is legalized in an increasing number of U.S. states, the number of people who use the drug daily is on the rise. This upward trend also holds up in women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, despite evidence that using marijuana could harm their babies.

4 Feb 2020

Roughly half of opioid prescriptions by dentists exceed pain-management guidelines

A new study suggests that roughly half of the opioid prescriptions written by dentists in the United States exceed the three-day supply recommended by federal dental pain-management guidelines.

4 Feb 2020

Nurses are at higher risk of suicide than general population, national study finds

In the first national study of its size, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine and UC San Diego Health, Department of Nursing, have found that male and female nurses are at higher risk of suicide than the general population.

3 Feb 2020

US life expectancy increases for the first time in 4 years

New data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that life expectancy in the United States increased in 2018.

30 Jan 2020

Recognizing the signs of overdose and knowing how to respond can save lives

Every day nearly 200 people die from an overdose of drugs or from alcohol poisoning, with opioids responsible for the majority.

26 Jan 2020

UCI-led study reveals link between early life adversity and opioid addiction

Individuals with a history of early life adversity are disproportionately prone to opioid addiction. A new UCI-led study reveals why.

24 Jan 2020

Opioid dependence produces permanent changes in the brains of rats

Approximately one-quarter of patients who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain misuse them, with five to 10 percent developing an opioid use disorder or addiction.

24 Jan 2020

APRNs have expanded roles in national response to opioid crisis

As we enter a new year and a new decade, many states have enacted legislation affecting the roles of advanced practice registered nurses in terms of practice authority, reimbursement, and prescriptive authority, according to the 32nd Annual Legislative Update in the January issue of The Nurse Practitioner, published by Wolters Kluwer.

24 Jan 2020

Majority of people knowingly use fentanyl, UBC research shows

Fentanyl use by people who use drugs has doubled since 2015, and two-thirds of people are aware they've taken it, finds new research out of British Columbia, the Canadian province that has experienced the highest number of illicit drug toxicity deaths as a result of the opioid crisis.

24 Jan 2020

New neuromodulation device may help prevent migraine

If your bank account balance looks nail-bitingly low and you won't get paid for days, you might agonize over every dollar you spend. Maybe you'll scrutinize grocery-store ads more closely than usual or brew your own coffee instead of ordering it from a barista.

24 Jan 2020

Treatment for low back pain in older adults does not match guidelines

Many Medicare patients with new episodes of low back pain receive care inconsistent with current guidelines - including high use of opioids and advanced imaging tests, reports a study in the February issue of Medical Care.

23 Jan 2020

Controlled-release opioids may lead to endocarditis in injection drug users

A new study from ICES, Lawson Health Research Institute and Western University suggests that injection drug users prescribed controlled-release hydromorphone are three times more likely to develop endocarditis, a serious bacterial heart infection, when compared to those prescribed other opioids.

22 Jan 2020

Pain management program uses new approach to reduce narcotic prescriptions after surgery

Surgeons at Houston Methodist Hospital are stemming the tide of addiction to prescription opioids by managing patients' pain after surgery.

22 Jan 2020

Opioids News and Research

Further Reading

Conservative Indiana adopted needle exchanges but still faces local resistance

Telemedicine can help pregnant women struggling with opioids

Researchers examine the effects of yoga, tai chi, and qigong on chronic low back pain

Higher opioid doses do not seem to improve pain, study finds

Re-engineered plant compound reduces morphine-seeking behaviors in mice

Magnetically levitated plasma proteins could vastly improve diagnosis of diseases

Good rehab is hard to find

Study provides key insights into pregnant women's use of marijuana

Roughly half of opioid prescriptions by dentists exceed pain-management guidelines

Nurses are at higher risk of suicide than general population, national study finds

US life expectancy increases for the first time in 4 years

Recognizing the signs of overdose and knowing how to respond can save lives

UCI-led study reveals link between early life adversity and opioid addiction

Opioid dependence produces permanent changes in the brains of rats

APRNs have expanded roles in national response to opioid crisis

Majority of people knowingly use fentanyl, UBC research shows

New neuromodulation device may help prevent migraine

Treatment for low back pain in older adults does not match guidelines

Controlled-release opioids may lead to endocarditis in injection drug users

Pain management program uses new approach to reduce narcotic prescriptions after surgery

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