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Blocking dopamine reduces drug seeking and taking behavior

Blocking dopamine receptors in different regions of the amygdala reduces drug seeking and taking behavior with varying longevity, according to research in rats published in eNeuro.

From Society for Neuroscience 30 Jul 2019

Plant compound found in red wine displays anti-stress effects

Like to unwind with a glass of red wine after a stressful day? Don't give alcohol all the credit.

26 Jul 2019

UChicago awarded $17 million grant to tackle opioid addiction in criminal justice settings

It's estimated that more than 130 people die every day from opioid-related drug overdoses. Particularly at risk are people transitioning through the criminal justice system, many of whom may already be struggling with complex issues spanning mental health, family instability and job and housing insecurity.

26 Jul 2019

Researchers harness the pain-relieving properties of cannabis to develop new pain killers

The cannabis plant produces pain-relieving molecules that are 30x more effective than aspirin. Researchers are now working on a plant-based pain killer.

25 Jul 2019

Researchers receive $10 million grant to examine opioid addiction treatment for jail detainees

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the University of Massachusetts Medical School are among the scientists at a dozen institutions nationwide that will form the Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network, an ambitious, $155 million effort to improve opioid addiction treatment in criminal justice settings, the National Institutes of Health announced.

25 Jul 2019

Researchers decode factors that contribute to risk of developing motor neuron disease

Trinity College Dublin researchers have found that one in 347 men and one in 436 women can be expected to develop motor neuron disease during their lifetime.

25 Jul 2019

Study finds higher opioid prescribing rates in the U.S. compared to other countries

Physicians in the United States may prescribe opioids more frequently to patients during hospitalization and at discharge when compared to their physician peers in other countries, according to a recently published study led by researchers from the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

24 Jul 2019

Impact of racial discrimination in moderate-to-heavy drinking adult Latinxs

University of Houston associate professor of psychology Andres Viana has received a $900,000 Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to examine the impact of racial discrimination in moderate-to-heavy drinking adult Latinxs. Viana prefers the gender-neutral term Latinx.

23 Jul 2019

Poverty tied to prolonged hospital stay for infants with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome

For infants with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome due to prenatal opioid exposure, poverty is a risk factor for prolonged length of hospital stay, reports a study in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

23 Jul 2019

Amid teen vaping ‘epidemic,’ Juul taps addiction expert as medical director

Juul Labs, the nation's leading manufacturer of e-cigarettes, has hired as its medical director a prominent University of California researcher known for his work on the dangers nicotine poses for the adolescent brain.

19 Jul 2019

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Biden doubles down on Obamacare

Former Vice President Joe Biden has said if he's elected president he would build on the Affordable Care Act rather than move to a whole new health care system, such as the "Medicare for All" plan supported by some of his primary opponents for the Democratic nomination.

19 Jul 2019

Over 1 million years of life lost in Ohio from overdose deaths, shows study

The drug addiction epidemic continues to plague the country, and thousands of lives are cut short each year due to overdose.

18 Jul 2019

Marijuana isn’t a great choice for glaucoma treatment, says expert

Marijuana can help reduce the pressure inside the eye (IOP, or intraocular pressure). Being a euphoric drug, it is now a commonly used recreational and medicinal drug. In fact, its use ranks fourth among all substances, behind tobacco, alcohol and caffeine.

18 Jul 2019

Opioid overdose deaths on the decline says CDC but the real picture may still be grim

The opioid epidemic began in the 1990s with hundreds of deaths occurring each year due to overdose of these drugs of abuse. According to the Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), for the first time in two decades, there has been a drop of 5 percent in the opioid overdose deaths in 2018.

17 Jul 2019

UTHealth researchers investigate how to reduce stress-driven alcohol use

Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) are investigating if a medication used to regulate blood sugar can alter motivation to use alcohol by targeting the brain's stress response system.

17 Jul 2019

Addressing patients' mental and emotional distress after surgery

With the advancement of technology and medicine, G. Michael Deeb, M.D., a cardiac surgeon at Michigan Medicine, says society is used to, and expects, instant solutions to their pain after medical procedures. This has resulted in an increased demand for narcotics, as well as their over usage.

17 Jul 2019

New regulations on e-cigarettes may have unintended consequences

Efforts by the FDA and some cities to limit the availability and appeal of e-cigarettes to young users could drive some existing users to smoke more tobacco cigarettes to get their fix, according to new research from Duke Health.

15 Jul 2019

Patients taking opioids for chronic pain could face health care access problems

Finding a new doctor for health checkups and general care can pose a challenge to anyone. But for people who take prescription opioid pills for their chronic pain, it might be far harder, according to a new study.

14 Jul 2019

Researchers analyze link between videogame addiction and school inadaptation

A team of researchers from the departments of Medicine and Education Sciences of the CEU Cardenal Herrera University in Castellón (Spain) has analyzed the relation between the addiction to videogames and school inadaptation in a group of teenagers in the province.

12 Jul 2019

Patients treated with NSAIDs use less opioids

Patients receiving a post-surgery prescription of ibuprofen with a rescue prescription of Percocet used less opioids than a group of similar patients who were prescribed just Percocet.

12 Jul 2019