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Doctors make big money testing urine for drugs, then ignore abnormal results

In April 2014, state and federal drug agents raided Jeffrey Campbell's medical clinic in Jeffersonville, Ind. Police cars blocked the parking lot as bewildered patients scattered and the agents carted off boxes of records from the doctor's office.

29 Nov 2017

Medicaid coverage for methadone could improve outcomes for pregnant women with OUD

Pregnant women with opioid use disorder (OUD) are more likely to receive evidence-based treatment with an "opioid agonist"- usually methadone- in states where those medications are covered by Medicaid, reports a study in the December issue of Medical Care, published by Wolters Kluwer.

14 Nov 2017

Taking a page from pharma’s playbook to fight the opioid crisis

Dr. Mary Meengs remembers the days, a couple of decades ago, when pharmaceutical salespeople would drop into her family practice in Chicago, eager to catch a moment between patients so they could pitch her a new drug.

14 Nov 2017

Neighborhood's quality has long-term effects on child and adolescent problem behaviors

The quality of the neighborhood where a child grows up has a significant impact on the number of problem behaviors they display during elementary and teenage years, a study led by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers suggests.

9 Nov 2017

New inpatient program can be powerful tool to close gap in addiction treatment

A new program at Boston Medical Center's Grayken Center for Addiction is showing that connecting patients to addiction treatment when they are hospitalized for other conditions can be a powerful tool in closing a gap in addiction treatment.

8 Nov 2017

Increasing prevalence of chronic conditions linked to adverse health outcomes for moms and newborns

Pregnant women today are more likely to have chronic conditions that could cause life-threatening complications than at any other time in the past decade – particularly poor women and those living in rural communities, a new Michigan Medicine study suggests.

8 Nov 2017

Study reveals link between parental unemployment and child neglect

The number of reported cases of child neglect in the United States of America increased as a result of the spike in unemployment following the financial crisis of 2007-08, according to new Oxford University research.

3 Nov 2017

UTSA professor receives $2.6 million grant to support women recovering from substance abuse

James H. Bray, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at The University of Texas at San Antonio, has received a five-year, $2.6 million grant to lead a project that will provide mental health services and recovery support to high-risk pregnant, postpartum women recovering from substance abuse.

2 Nov 2017

Study finds link between marijuana use and cognitive dysfunction in people with HIV

Marijuana use is associated with cognitive dysfunction in people with HIV infection who have an alcohol or other drug use disorder, according to a new study from researchers at Boston University School of Public Health, Boston University School of Medicine, and Boston Medical Center.

1 Nov 2017

HIV testing found to be higher among transgender females, study shows

A new University at Buffalo study has shown that HIV testing among transgender adults was higher in those who identified as female, were African-American or Hispanic, or had a history of incarceration.

1 Nov 2017

UTHealth awarded federal grant to provide HIV treatment, education for individuals with substance abuse

A $2.5 million federal grant will allow a multidisciplinary team at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston to provide prevention and treatment information about HIV, AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases to underserved individuals with substance abuse or mental disorders.

31 Oct 2017

Sanford Health to evaluate effectiveness of non-opioid medications

Sanford Health is one of three sites in the U.S. to launch a study to determine if non-opioid medications are as effective in managing pain after carpal-tunnel surgery.

30 Oct 2017

ASA applauds President Trump’s declaration of opioid crisis as public health emergency

The American Society of Anesthesiologists today announced its support of President Donald J. Trump's announcement officially declaring the opioid crisis a public health emergency.

28 Oct 2017

Researchers use machine learning to identify illegal selling of opioids on Twitter

Using advanced machine learning, a cross disciplinary team of University of California San Diego researchers developed technology that mined Twitter to identify entities illegally selling prescription opioids online.

25 Oct 2017

New survey finds huge decline in substance abuse, delinquency among teens

More than a decade of data indicates teens have become far less likely to abuse alcohol, nicotine and illicit drugs, and they also are less likely to engage in delinquent behaviors, such as fighting and stealing, according to results of a national survey analyzed by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

25 Oct 2017

Bariatric surgical patients may be vulnerable to opioid dependence

Nearly 9 percent of bariatric surgical patients--or about one in 12--who did not take opioid pain medications until their weight-loss operation, or the month before it, report that they are still using prescription opioids one year postoperatively, according to new research findings.

24 Oct 2017

HCV screening or diagnosis could lower non‐prescribed opioid use

Research presented this week at The Liver Meeting – held by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases – shows people in treatment for opioid substance abuse significantly lowered their non‐prescribed opioid use after testing positive for hepatitis C virus.

20 Oct 2017

Parents with alcohol use disorder increase risk for teen dating violence

Having a parent with an alcohol use disorder increases the risk for dating violence among teenagers, according to a study from the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions.

20 Oct 2017

Despite GOP efforts to corral Medicaid spending, states expand benefits

While congressional Republicans and President Donald Trump have been seeking major cuts in federal funding of Medicaid, 26 states this year expanded or enhanced benefits and at least 17 plan to do so next year, according to a report released Thursday.

19 Oct 2017

On back roads of Appalachia’s coal country, mental health services are as rare as jobs

Every other month, Tanya Nelson travels 32 miles from the heart of Appalachia's coal country for an appointment with the nearest psychiatrist for therapy and to renew prescriptions. But the commute, which should take less than an hour through the winding mountain roads of southern West Virginia, consumes her entire day.

17 Oct 2017