Pennsylvania has long had one of the highest death rates from drug overdose in the US. But new studies suggest counties throughout the state have different rates of opioid deaths.
Eating culinary poppy seeds won’t get you high, but they could lead to a failed drug test.
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Poppy seeds can become contaminated with opiates during harvesting. For the US Defense Department, invoking a ‘poppy seed defense’ may not be enough to rule out a positive drug test result.
A supervised consumption site in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, in 2021. B.C. has decriminalized simple possession of drugs, including methamphetamines and opioids.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Supervised consumption sites provide essential community connections and services for those who use them. By closing them, governments are risking the welfare of people who use drugs.
The best treatment for heroin dependence is opioid agonist treatment, where a similar but longer-acting opioid is provided in a regular dose, often with counselling or other support.
Matthew Perry’s colon ruptured as a result of his opioid use.
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Matthew Perry recently revealed that his colon burst as a result of long-term opioid abuse.
The cannabis plant produces both THC – the psychoactive component in marijuana – and the compound commonly known as CBD, which does not lead to a ‘high.’
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Drugs can interact with one another in ways that are harmful. A study finds that taking oxycodone with certain SSRIs can make an opioid overdose more likely.
OxyContin, an opioid drug heavily marketed by Purdue Pharma, is associated with billions of dollars of health-care costs in Canada related to the opioid crisis.
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The Purdue Pharma settlement is paltry compared to costs of the opioid crisis. Without major changes to pharma industry regulation, there is little reason to think a similar crisis won’t occur again.
A variety of pain-relieving drugs are available both over the counter and by prescription.
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Different painkillers provide relief in different ways. The most effective medication is the one that best targets the type of pain you’re experiencing with minimal side effects.
Opioids can help reduce the amount of medication needed to achieve anesthesia.
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Non-opioid directives allow patients to refuse opioids in all health care settings. For surgical procedures that require anesthesia, however, this may do more harm than good.
Fentanyl’s wide availability in the drug supply has led to an increase in unintentional overdoses. While prevention strategies are available, limited availability stymies their use.
New national standards aim to change doctors’ prescribing habits for hospital patients with pain when they’re discharged home. But clinicians also need to ensure patients’ pain is well managed.
Dr. Laura Kehoe gives a presentation about why emergency room physicians should prescribe buprenorphine for people recovering from opioid overdoses.
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After battling drug manufacturers and distributors in court for years, local and state governments are about to receive a windfall that could expand access to treatments that can save lives.
Methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine distributed by the Drug User Liberation Front, a grassroots organization proving a safe supply of illicit drugs, in Vancouver, in April 2021.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
People are dying from using a toxic drug supply. Safer supply and other approaches that listen to the needs of people who use drugs are critical to saving lives and addressing the opioid crisis.
We researched how much difference opioids like codeine, oxycodone or morphine make to osteoarthritis pain. We found they helped about as much as paracetamol. Yet they are far more dangerous.
The concept of placebos – which are sometimes called “sugar pills” – has been around since the 1800s.
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Drug manufacturers often shun the use of placebos in clinical trials. But research suggests that placebos could play an important role in the treatment of depression, pain and other maladies.
A part of the brain called the lateral parabrachial nucleus regulates pain, anxiety and breathing.
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Sung Han, University of California, San Diego and Shijia Liu, University of California, San Diego
Opioids can cause death by slowing breathing to dangerously low levels, or stopping it altogether. Examining one area of the brain may eventually lead to safer painkillers.