Addiction

The guidelines were developed as part of a multi-part plan to curb misuse, abuse, and diversion of opioid medication by preventing opioid medications from being inappropriately prescribed in the emergency department, and by reducing the overuse of emergency departments for pain relief.

Emergency physicians may see an increase in heroin overdoses that are actually tied to acetyl fentanyl, a legal opiate with effects mirroring heroin.

Rescheduling hydrocodone combination products to the more-restrictive schedule II will impact clinicians and patients suffering with chronic pain, but will it have the desired effect on the misuse and abuse of these products?

A team of researchers may have identified specific risk factors explaining the association between bipolar disorder and substance abuse among teens.

Belsomra (suvorexant) is the first orexin receptor antagonist approved for insomnia.

Nonmedical prescription opiate use is linked to the dramatic increase in heroin use from 2007 to 2012, according to a study from New York University's Center for Drug Use and HIV Research.

A staggering portion of the homeless who are alcohol dependent began drinking as children and cited their drinking as the main cause of their homelessness.

Individuals with alcohol use disorders are twice as likely as those without a history of problem drinking to suffer from memory loss in the future.

Researchers debunked the long-standing premise that there is a strong association between mental illness and crime by determining substance addiction is a stronger predictor of recidivism among offenders.

While scientists have previously identified the changes to brain tissue and organs caused by alcoholism, a team of researchers has now shown the long-term neurological effects of excessive drinking on a molecular level.

Sex addicts and drug addicts display similar brain activity when they are triggered with the appropriate stimuli.

After looking at a national sampling of high school seniors, researchers at New York University determined the strongest predictor of ecstasy use was prior drug consumption.

Abuse-deterrent properties, identical efficacy for pain relief, reversal of opioid-induced constipation, and theoretical tolerance mitigation may give Targiniq ER an interesting advantage over other oral opioids.

Marijuana use in adolescence results in significant cognitive and behavioral impairments.

One of the most common treatment courses for chronic pain is comprised of prescription opioid medications. However, concerns about drug addiction and abuse oftentimes outweigh the drugs' pain-relieving benefits.

Despite the negative publicity surrounding opioid analgesics in the management of chronic pain, the medications should not be omitted from any respectable pain physician's armamentarium.

Alcohol misuse precedes one-third of all suicides, according to research published in the Annals of Epidemiology.

Many young smokers are unaware of the adverse health effects associated with hookah smoking.

Surprisingly, soldiers who have killed in combat are less likely to develop an addiction to alcohol, according to researchers at American University.

Victims of child abuse who become substance abusers are more vulnerable to addiction relapse.

A team of researchers has discovered a novel neurotransmission that influences addiction-related memory.

For those who fail to quit smoking with varenicline treatment alone, adding a nicotine patch will likely increase the odds of tobacco abstinence at 6 months.

Among highly nicotine-dependent male smokers, therapies that combine smoking cessation agents significantly increase the likelihood of quitting, according to a study published in The American Journal of Psychiatry.

Although many primary care physicians remain uncertain of how to best help patients in pain manage their opioid prescriptions, new research shows a standardized protocol based on electronic medical records can get patients the assistance they need while providing peace of mind to prescribers.

Although medications for alcohol use disorders are not widely utilized, a review published in a recent issue of JAMA highlighted several drugs that can effectively reduce alcohol consumption.

Among HIV-positive injection drug users, food insecurity is associated with mortality despite the use of antiretroviral therapy.

The American Academy of Pediatrics designed the 2014 Recommendations for Pediatrics Preventive Health Care to guide well-child care, but there is controversy over some of the changes.

A meta-analysis of the effects of current attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder drugs has led researchers to conclude black market doses are unsafe for adolescent consumers.

Medication selection should be driven by rational polypharmacy and take into account such factors as pain type, underlying symptoms, comorbidities, patient preference, and medication side effects.

Although many studies have found Crohn's disease (CD) patients are more likely to smoke than the general population, only a few have examined CD prevalence as it relates to regional smoking rates.