Category: From Newswise – Addiction

A comprehensive analysis of 80 scientific studies has identified a ‘window of impairment’ of between three and 10 hours caused by moderate to high doses of the intoxicating component of cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

Since 2016, a federal regulation has allowed nurse practitioners and physician assistants to obtain a waiver to prescribe buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder as a medication assisted treatment.

In a new study, nearly two-thirds of female participants reported drinking more since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, including increases in daily drinking, drinking earlier in the day, and binge drinking.

Among people with opioid use disorder (OUD), more than half have reported contact with the criminal justice system. A new study published today in Health Affairs reveals that Medicaid expansion is associated with substantial improvements in access to medications for OUD. However, the study also reveals that individuals referred for treatment by the criminal justice system were substantially less likely to receive medications for OUD as part of the treatment plan.

A string of opioid trade sites on the dark web have been uncovered by researchers with The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Biomedical Informatics.

Each year in the U.S., about 30 million hospitalizations occur in individuals 18 and older. Of these, more than 7 million are current cigarette smokers whose average hospital stay is several days. Researchers say that starting smoking cessation therapy during hospitalization and maintaining high adherence post-discharge can markedly improve permanent quit rates in these patients with minimal to no side effects. Cessation therapy also should include long-term counseling and at least 90 days of a prescription drug, specifically, varenicline.

The Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts (FORE) and the Addiction Policy Forum (APF) are launching a program to assist people with substance use disorder obtain COVID-19 vaccinations.

A Penn Medicine new study of how text messaging could inform opioid prescribing practices showed that 60 percent of opioids are left over after orthopaedic and urologic procedures

The Arkansas Society of Anesthesiologists (ARSA) and the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today applaud bill sponsor Sen. Cecile Bledsoe and the Arkansas Senate Public Health, Labor and Welfare Committee for helping to ensure the safety of patients prescribed opioids. Arkansas State Drug Director Kirk Lane and Jonathan Goree, M.D., a physician anesthesiologist and pain medicine specialist, testified for the bill.