Addiction
17 Sep Medical Marijuana Laws Linked To Lower Opioid-Related Traffic Deaths
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_28045" align="alignleft" width="163"]
June Kim[/caption]
June H. Kim
Doctoral candidate,Department of Epidemiology
Mailman School Public Health
Columbia University
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: A previous study indicated that states with medical marijuana laws had a reduced rate of opioid overdoses. If this is true, we'd expect to see similar reductions in opioid use associated with these laws. For this study, we used data from the FARS, a national surveillance system that records any crash events on US public roads that result in a fatality. Some states provide uniform testing of the majority of their deceased drivers, year to year. Among these states, we found that there was a lower prevalence of positive opioid toxicology tests among drivers crashing in states with an operational medical marijuana versus drivers crashing in states before a future medical marijuana law is implemented, particularly among drivers aged 21-40.
16 Sep Need for Congruent Treatment Goals Between Alcohol-Dependent Patients and Caregivers
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_28028" align="alignleft" width="150"]
Dr. Kristina J. Berglund[/caption]
Kristina J. Berglund
Department of Psychology
University of Gothenburg
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: In Sweden, care providers do offer different treatment strategies for individuals who have alcohol problems, where some offer a treatment where the goal is abstinence and other offer a treatment where the goal is low-risk consumption. We wanted to investigate how important it was for having a successful treatment when there was congruence between the patient’s goals and the advocated goal of the treatment, and when there was not.
The main findings was that that if the patient had a goal of abstinence than it was much more likely to reach that goal if the patient went to a treatment that advocated abstinence. It was less likely to reach the goal if a patient had a goal of low-risk consumption and went to a treatment that advocated low-risk consumption. The treatment that advocated abstinence was also more effective when the patient were ambivalent of his/her own goal.
15 Sep Costs of Prescription Opioid Overdose, Abuse and Dependence Top $75 Billion
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27960" align="alignleft" width="180"]
Curtis Florence, PhD[/caption]
Curtis Florence, PhD
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and
Assistant professor, Department of Health Policy Management
Rollins School of Public Health
Emory
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response:
- This study presents most recent CDC estimates of the economic burden of prescription opioid abuse, dependence and overdose in the United States.
- In 2013, over 16,000 persons died of prescription opioid overdoses, and almost 2 million people met the diagnostic criteria for abuse and/or dependence.
06 Sep Marijuana Use Doubles From 2002-2014
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27683" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Dr. Wilson Compton[/caption]
Dr. Wilson Compton MD, Deputy Director
National Institute on Drug Abuse
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The study found that overall past year marijuana use by adults in the U.S. increased by more than 30% in the past dozen years, and 10 million more people were using marijuana in 2014 than in 2002. Use of marijuana on a daily (or near daily) basis increased even more markedly. In 2002, 3.9 million adults in the U.S. reported using marijuana daily or nearly every day, and the number more than doubled to 8.4 million by 2014. Along with this increase in use, we found that U.S. adults perceptions of the potential harms from using marijuana greatly decreased. Despite scientific evidence of potential harms, adults are much less convinced about dangers associated with using marijuana. These reductions in perceived harm were strongly associated with the increases in use.
02 Sep Repeat Urine Drug Testing Can Improve Compliance of Patients on Opioid Medications
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27601" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Dr. N. Nick Knezevic[/caption]
N. Nick Knezevic, MD, PhD
Vice Chair for Research and Education
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Surgery at University of Illinois
Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center
Department of Anesthesiology
Chicago, IL 60657
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Even though serious efforts have been undertaken by different medical societies to reduce opioid use for treating chronic non-cancer pain, still many Americans seek pain relief through opioid consumption. The purpose of this study was to accurately assess compliance of chronic opioid consuming patients in an outpatient setting and evaluate if utilizing repeated urine drug testing could improve compliance.
01 Sep Cancer Drug May Mitigate Compulsive Cocaine Memories
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Stefania Fasano Cardiff University MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Exposure to drugs of abuse such as cocaine produces intense and long-lasting memories that are critical in the transition from recreational drug-taking to uncontrolled drug use. In the brain, addictive drugs usurp cellular circuits and signalling molecules involved in normal memory processes; hence, these drug-related memories resist extinction and contribute to high rates of relapse. Despite almost five decades of experimental research, there are currently no approved medications for cocaine dependence.30 Aug Surge in Fentanyl Deaths in Florida and Ohio Linked to Illicitly Manufactured Opioids
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27499" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Alexis B. Peterson, PhD[/caption]
Alexis B. Peterson, PhD
(Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer)
[caption id="attachment_27435" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Dr. R. Mathew Gladden[/caption]
R. Matthew Gladden, PhD (Behavioral Scientist)
MedicalResearch.com What is the background for this study?
Response: In March and October 2015, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued nationwide alerts identifying fentanyl, particularly illicitly manufactured fentanyl, as a threat to public health and safety. During 2013-2014, Ohio and Florida reported significant increases in fentanyl-involved overdose deaths (fentanyl deaths) and fentanyl submissions (drug products obtained by law enforcement that tested positive for fentanyl).
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 50-100 times more potent than morphine. The University of Florida and the Ohio Department of Public Health with CDC assistance compared trends in fentanyl deaths, fentanyl submissions, and fentanyl prescribing during January 2013–June 2015.
In-depth review of medical examiner and coroner reports of fentanyl deaths occurring in Ohio’s 14 high-burden counties were performed to identify circumstances surrounding fentanyl overdose death.
29 Aug Law Enforcement Agencies Report Large Increases in Synthetic Opioid–Involved Overdose Deaths
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27435" align="alignleft" width="153"]
Dr. R. Mathew Gladden[/caption]
R. Matthew Gladden, PhD
Surveillance and Epidemiology Team, Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: In March and October 2015, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and CDC, respectively, issued nationwide alerts identifying illicitly manufactured fentanyl (IMF) as a threat to public health and safety.IMF is unlawfully produced fentanyl, obtained through illicit drug markets, includes fentanyl analogs, and is commonly mixed with or sold as heroin. Starting in 2013, the production and distribution of IMF increased to unprecedented levels, fueled by increases in the global supply, processing, and distribution of fentanyl and fentanyl-precursor chemicals by criminal organizations.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 50?100 times more potent than morphine. Multiple states have reported increases in fentanyl-involved overdose (poisoning) deaths (fentanyl deaths). This report examined the number of drug products obtained by law enforcement that tested positive for fentanyl (fentanyl submissions) and synthetic opioid-involved deaths other than methadone (synthetic opioid deaths), which include fentanyl deaths and deaths involving other synthetic opioids (e.g., tramadol).
27 Aug Illicitly-Manufactured Fentanyl Contributing To Increasing Numbers of Heroin Deaths
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: John Halpin, MD, MPH, Medical officer Prescription Drug Overdose Epidemiology and Surveillance Team CDC Injury Center MedicalReseach.com editor’s note: Dr. Halpern discusses the CDC alert of August 25, 2016 regarding the increase in fentanyl-related unintentional overdose fatalities in multiple states. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this alert? Response: The current health alert is an update to a previous alert in October, 2015 from CDC which described the geographic spread of states in which forensic labs were increasingly detecting fentanyl in the drug submissions that they receive from law enforcement, and how many of these same states were beginning to report fentanyl-related overdose deaths by their departments of public health. Further investigation by CDC and DEA have revealed that the great majority of fentanyl now present in the illicit drugs market is clandestinely-produced, and most commonly mixed with and sold as heroin, and is responsible for the great majority of fentanyl-related overdose deaths. Indications at the time of that alert pointed to a likely continuous rise in the supply of illicitly-manufactured fentanyl, and the potential for increasing numbers of fentanyl-related overdose deaths, particularly among those who use heroin.23 Aug Study By Quest Diagnostics Finds Half of Americans Misuse Their Drugs
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_27243" align="alignleft" width="190"]
Dr. F. Leland McClure[/caption]
F. Leland McClure III, MSci, PhD, F-ABFT
Medical science liaison director
Quest Diagnostics
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Many physicians associate Quest Diagnostics with their lab service needs because of our leadership in laboratory testing. But Quest is more than a lab, which is why we refer to ourselves as a diagnostic information services provider. This means that we help providers, health plans and even patients use the insights we derive from our lab testing data to deliver better care, quality and outcomes, both for the patient and the managed population.
Our 2016 Quest Diagnostics Health Trends(TM) Prescription Drug Monitoring Report is an example of how we provide important health insights from Quest's laboratory data. Prescription drug misuse is a major epidemic in the United States. Laboratory testing can help identify if a patient is using or misusing prescribed medications. For instance, lab tests can show evidence of additional medications and other drugs in a patient’s urine specimen, suggesting potentially dangerous drug combinations. Earlier this year, the CDC issued guidelines that call for laboratory testing for patients prescribed certain medications, such as opioids, that carry a risk of abuse.
Quest's prescription drug monitoring services help the physician identify if a patient is taking or not taking up to about four dozen drugs, such as oxycodone, Adderall XR® and Percocet®. For the Quest analysis, we analyzed more than 3 million de-identified lab test results.
In this report, we found that 54 percent of patients’ results tested in 2015 showed evidence of drug misuse, slightly above the 53 percent misuse rate in 2014. That is certainly unacceptably high, but it’s a significant decline from the high of 63 percent we observed in 2011.
We also found that an increasing proportion of patients who misuse medications combine their prescription medication with non-prescribed drugs. Among patients with inconsistent test results, forty-five percent of these patients showed evidence of one or more other drug(s) in addition to their prescribed drug regimen. That’s much higher than our findings of 35 percent in 2014 and 2013, 33 percent in 2012, and 32 percent in 2011.
Finally, we were alarmed by the data showing the connection between heroin and benzodiazepines misuse. Our data showed one in three heroin users combine their drug use with benzodiazepines, the vast majority of which were unprescribed. This is an extremely dangerous practice given that benzodiazepines can have strong respiratory depressant effects when combined with other substances. Drug combinations, but particularly of heroin with benzodiazepines, can be potentially very dangerous, leading to coma and even death in some cases.
10 Aug Counterfeit Xanax Contained Toxic Amounts of Opioid Fentanyl
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ann M. Arens, MD California Poison Control Center San Francisco, CA 94110 MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Prescription opioid abuse is a significant public health threat that has garnered the attention of health care providers throughout medicine. With efforts to curb the number of prescriptions for opioid pain medications, users may begin to purchase prescription medications from illegal sources. Our study reports a series of patients in the San Francisco Bay Area who were exposed to counterfeit alprazolam (Xanax®) tablets found to contain large amounts of fentanyl, an opioid 100 times more potent than morphine, and in some cases etizolam, a benzodiazepine. The California Poison Control System – San Francisco division identified eight patients with unexpected serious health effects after exposure to the tablets including respiratory depression requiring mechanical ventilation, pulmonary edema, cardiac arrest, and one fatality. Patients reportedly purchased the tablets from drug dealers, and were unaware of their true contents. In one case, a 7 month-old infant accidentally ingested a counterfeit tablet dropped on the floor by a family member.04 Aug Limiting Prescriptions to Three Days and Using Short Acting Drugs May Decrease Opioid Dependency
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26700" align="alignleft" width="133"]
Dr. Richard Deyo[/caption]
Richard A. Deyo MD, MPH
Kaiser Permanente Professor of Evidence-Based Family Medicine
Department of Family Medicine
Department of Medicine
Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences
Oregon Health and Science University
Portland, OR 97239
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Doctors and other prescribers often wonder how much and for how long they can prescribe opioids before inadvertently promoting long-term use. Unfortunately, few data are available to guide initial prescribing. Long-term opioid use is problematic because of substantial rates of dependence and misuse, and because the efficacy of long-term therapy remains unproven. Development of drug tolerance and increasing sensitivity to pain may limit long-term efficacy. Several factors may explain the emergence of inadvertent long-term use, including opioid dependence, recreational use, addiction, and illicit diversion to other users.
We studied the risk of long-term use (defined as filling 6 or more opioid prescriptions in the subsequent year) with data from Oregon's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, which captures all opioid prescriptions filled in Oregon pharmacies, regardless of who wrote the prescription or who paid for the prescription. We identified patients who had not received opioid medication in the previous year, but now received an initial prescription. There were over half a million such patients during the one-year study.
Our most informative analysis was among people under age 45, which excluded most patients with a diagnosis of cancer, who were near the end of life, or who had chronic painful conditions such as arthritis. In this group, a patient who received just a three day supply of a moderate dose of opioids (For example, 10 mg. of hydrocodone plus acetaminophen 4 times daily for 3 days) had about a 2% risk of becoming a long term user. Someone who filled two prescriptions jumped to a 7% risk.
Patients receiving a long-acting opioid as the first prescription had a higher risk of becoming long term users than those receiving short-acting opioids. Patients receiving a single prescription for such medications had almost a 16% likelihood of becoming long-term users compared to just 2% for those receiving short-term opioids. In some cases, long-term use may have been intended, but our exclusion of patients with cancer and end-of-life care made this less likely.
29 Jul Treating ADHD Reduces Risk of Injuries, STDs and Substance Abuse
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26625" align="alignleft" width="150"]
Dr. Chorniy[/caption]
Anna Chorniy PhD
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Center for Health and Wellbeing
Princeton University
Princeton NJ 08544
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the common chronic mental conditions affecting children. In the U.S., 11% of children ages 4–17 (6.4 million) are estimated to have an ADHD diagnosis and almost 70% of them report taking medication for the condition (e.g. Visser et al., 2014). However, little evidence exists on the effects of ADHD treatment on children’s outcomes.
We use a panel data set of South Carolina Medicaid claims paid out in 2003–2013 to investigate the effects of ADHD medication treatment on a seldom studied set of outcomes associated with this condition: adolescent risky behaviors and the incidence of injuries.
The occurrence of injuries allows us to evaluate short-term effects of ADHD treatment, while substance abuse and risky sexual behavior outcomes speak for the long-term effects of medication. Second, we use Medicaid spending on treatment of these negative events to evaluate the impact of ADHD drugs on the severity of ADHD, and compare the cost of ADHD treatment with the costs of negative health events.
29 Jul Almost A Million Cases of Maternal Syphilis Globally Per year
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26580" align="alignleft" width="200"]
N. Saman Wijesooriya[/caption]
N. Saman Wijesooriya
Public Health Advisor/Technical Advisor
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The article Global burden of maternal and congenital syphilis in 2008 and 2012: a health systems modeling study by Wijesooriya, et al published in the August 2016 issue of The Lancet Global Health (Open source - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2214-109X(16)30135-8) estimates the incidence and prevalence of maternal and congenital syphilis for both time periods and identifies gaps antenatal care access and syphilis testing and treatment services to assess progress in the global elimination of congenital syphilis, or mother-to-child transmission of syphilis, as a public health problem.
Untreated maternal syphilis is understood to be transmitted from mother-to-child in utero in 50% of cases resulting in tragic adverse pregnancy outcomes, or congenital syphilis infections, including early fetal death, stillbirth, preterm birth, low birthweight, neonatal death, and congenital infections in infants. Since most maternal syphilis infections are asymptomatic, it is recommended that screening for syphilis use a combination of serological tests for pregnant women and treatment of syphilis seropositive women with at least 2.4 million units of benzathine penicillin intramuscularly early in pregnancy to prevent most congenital syphilis infections.
In 2007, the World Health Organization responded to estimates indicating 2 million maternal and 1.5 congenital syphilis infections would occur annually without treatment and launched the global initiative for the Elimination of Congenital Syphilis (ECS). The strategy includes reducing the prevalence of syphilis in pregnant women and mother-to-child transmission of syphilis. The objective is for countries to achieve high performing antenatal care systems providing access to antenatal care to more than 95% of pregnant women, syphilis testing for more than 95% of pregnant women, and treatment for more than 95% of seropositive women to attain a congenital syphilis rate of 50 or fewer cases per 100,000 live births.
28 Jul SneakGuard™ Designed to Protect Children From Accidental Cannabis Ingestion
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Graeme Gordon
CEO and Founder at SneakGuard - Home of Safe Responsible Storage
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for SneakGuard™?
Response: SneakGuard™ creator and founder, Graeme Gordon recognized the urgent need to keep adventurous young snoopers from unintentionally ingesting cannabis. Founded in 2014, SneakGuard™ is a locking, vacuum and thermally insulated container that provides responsible storage of medications and cannabis, with the passion to protect, save and enhance everyday quality of life. Gordon explains “As a father of a 8 year old I understand how pressing it is for adults to protect children, teens, and even pets from unintended ingestion, so I created a unique storage unit to provide a solution.”
27 Jul Secondhand Pot Smoke Just As Bad For Heart As Tobacco
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26428" align="alignleft" width="200"]
Dr. Matthew Springer[/caption]
Matthew L. Springer, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine
Division of Cardiology
University of California, San Francisco
San Francisco, CA
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: We've known for many years that secondhand smoke from tobacco cigarettes is harmful, and the vast majority of deaths thought to result from secondhand smoke are from cardiovascular disease. However, very little has been known about cardiovascular consequences of exposure to secondhand smoke from marijuana, and people tend to mistake the lack of evidence that it is harmful, for evidence that is it not harmful. As a result, many people seem relatively unconcerned about smoking marijuana and being exposed (or exposing others) to marijuana secondhand smoke. Politicians and policy makers also seem less willing to limit where people can smoke marijuana (under legal circumstances) than tobacco. What has been lacking is research into how exposure to marijuana smoke affects cardiovascular health. It has been difficult to do such experiments because marijuana is illegal in the eyes of the federal government. However, we have been studying the harmful effects of secondhand tobacco smoke on the function of rat blood vessels, which is similar to its harmful effects on human blood vessels, and we now have studied how the function of rat blood vessels is affected by exposure to secondhand marijuana smoke.
25 Jul More Kids Now Accidentally Exposed To Edible Marijuana Poisoning
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26469" align="alignleft" width="144"]
Dr. Wang[/caption]
George Sam Wang MD FAAP
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics
Section of Emergency Medicine, Medical Toxicology
Department of Pediatrics
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Children's Hospital Colorado
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Many states have allowed medical and now recreational marijuana. The impact on pediatric population has not been fully described.
MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings?
Response: Unintentional exposures presenting to our children's hospital and calls to our regional poison center significantly increased after our state allowed recreational marijuana.
MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?
Response: Exposures in children are increasing in our state that allows medical and recreational Marijuana, many were edible products. Marijuana products should be treated like medications and household products in home and properly and safely stored. States looking to legalize marijuana need to consider safety rules and regulations during rule making processes.
21 Jul Large Proportion of Pregnant Women Use Alcohol and Tobacco in First Trimester
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_26340" align="alignleft" width="131"]
Dr. Qiana Brown[/caption]
Dr. Qiana L. Brown, PhD, MPH, LCSW
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Columbia University
Mailman School of Public Health
Department of Epidemiology
Substance Abuse Epidemiology Training Program
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Dr. Brown: Prenatal substance use is a major public health concern, and poses significant threats to maternal and child health. Tobacco and alcohol are the most commonly used substances among pregnant women and non-pregnant women of reproductive age, and are leading causes of preventable adverse health outcomes for both mother and baby. Women with health insurance have more prenatal visits, and present for prenatal care earlier than uninsured women, which may increase their exposure to health messaging around substance abuse prevention at prenatal visits. Additionally, treatment for substance use disorders and maternal and child health care are part of the Essential Health Benefits covered by the Affordable Care Act, which may encourage patients and providers to engage in discussions around alcohol and tobacco use prevention during pregnancy.
Given these factors, we examined the relationship between health insurance coverage and both past month tobacco use and past month alcohol use among a nationally representative sample of reproductive age women in the United States. We sampled 97,788 women ages 12 to 44 years old who participated in the U.S. National Survey of Drug Use and Health in 2010 to 2014. Among these women, 3.28% (n=3,267) were pregnant. We specifically investigated whether the relationship between health insurance and alcohol or tobacco use differed between pregnant and non-pregnant women.
19 Jul Moderate Alcohol May Impair Short Term Memory In Older Adults
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Jeff Boissoneault, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
Center for Pain Research and Behavioral Health
Department of Clinical and Health Psychology
University of Florida
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Many older adults are regular moderate drinkers. Although moderate drinking is considered to be a low risk behavior, growing evidence suggests older adults may be more susceptible to the cognitive and behavioral effects of moderate alcohol intake than younger people. We have previously shown that blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) below the legal limit for driving in the United States, 0.08 g/dL, affect working, or short-term, memory performance in older but not younger adults. For this study, we examined frontal theta power (FTP) and posterior alpha power (PAP), which are electrophysiological measures of brain activity associated with cognitive effort and maintenance of visual information, during a working memory task in both older and younger social drinkers.
We found that during a nine-second delay period during which participants held briefly-displayed images in memory, moderate alcohol intake increased PAP in younger adults but decreased PAP in older adults. Examining the relationship between PAP and behavioral performance (accuracy and reaction time) suggested older adults may attempt to compensate for moderate alcohol-induced working memory impairment by prioritizing quick responding over the protection of their mental representation of the task images from environmental distractions. Younger adults did not show this effect.
14 Jul Proove Biosciences Introduces Genetic Tests To Complement Pain and Thromboembolism Care
[caption id="attachment_26111" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Brian Meshkin[/caption]
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Brian Meshkin
Founder and CEO of Proove Biosciences
Editor’s note: Proove Biosciences, Inc introduced three new evidence-based tests to support better clinical decision-making for difficult-to-treat conditions that are influenced by genetics. These conditions include substance abuse, fibromyalgia and venous thromboembolism. The tests are especially relevant in light of the House of Representatives passing the Comprehensive Addiction Recovery Act (CARA) bill on July 8, 2016 to combat the opioid epidemic.
MedicalResearch.com: Would you update our readers on the significance and implications of the CARA Act? What is the role of genetics in addiction? What is the background for the Proove Addiction™ Profile? How does it aid in addiction management?
Response: CARA is a national piece of legislation to expand access to treatment for drug overdoses and addiction. It also includes some other provisions meant to help address the opioid epidemic. However, there are some serious implications.
First, it does not contain any funding, so it is a bit of a “Potemkin Village”. It is also a bit of a façade because it does not address 50% of the equation. According to the definition of addiction from the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) and the National Institutes of Drug Abuse (NIDA), about half of substance abuse is due to genetic factors. If you are studying for a test and ignoring half of the material, chances are you are not going to do well on the test. As doctors are confronted with the challenges of objectively assessing pain and knowing which patients are at risk for abuse, they must consider genetics.
The Proove Opioid Risk test combines genetic markers and phenotypic variables into an algorithm to effectively identify patients at low, moderate and high risk for opioid abuse. By knowing this information, a physician can make better decisions about opioids. For low risk patients, a physician can safely prescribe and a patient does not need to fear the opioid prescription they are given – as this is about 50% of the population. For those at moderate risk, a physician can use a greater level of vigilance to monitor those patients with abuse-deterrent formulations, regular urine drug screens, opioid contracts, and other tools to monitor their use. For the small number of patients – less than 10% - that are at high risk, a physician can use alternative forms of pain relief such as interventional procedures or non-opioid analgesics to provide the needed relief to patients.
The Proove Addiction Profile builds on this commitment, by providing genetic data points related to other disorders, such as addictions to alcohol, heroin, cocaine and others. Unfortunately, many patients who screen positive for aberrant behavior, such as having an illicit drug in their urine, are often discharged from care by their doctor. This just gets them lost in the system. By running the Proove Addiction Profile in addition to a urine drug screen, a doctor can better understand the genetic factors associated with the aberrant behavior and refer the troubled patient to an addiction specialist for treatment.
11 Jul Specific Type of Brain Neurons Control Excessive Alcohol Intake
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:, [caption id="attachment_26029" align="alignleft" width="159"]
Dr. Jun Wang[/caption]
Jun Wang, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics
Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience (TAMU/TAMHSC)
TAMHSC COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
Bryan, TX 77807
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Alcohol use disorder is a big problem for our society and only a limited number of medicine is available. We hope to find more treatment in animal models of alcoholism.
A group of neurons containing dopamine D2 receptors in the brain prevent us from drinking alcohol heavily.
06 Jul Marijuana Use May Raise Addiction Risk by Altering Brain’s Response To Rewards
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_25898" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Dr. Mary Heitzeg[/caption]
Mary P. Heitzeg, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Psychiatry
University of Michigan
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: We wanted to find out if marijuana use changed the way the brain’s reward system responded to natural rewards. To probe response to natural reward, we used the chance to win some money and we observed brain response using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We looked at brain activity when participants were 20 years old on average, and then again 2 years later and 4 years later. We found that over time marijuana use was associated with a decrease in the brain’s reward response to the chance to win money. This finding is consistent with current theories of addiction that suggest that repeated use of a substance may dampen the brain’s reward response to things normally perceived as pleasurable and this alteration may drive the individual to continue substance use.
04 Jul At Lower Dose, Addiction Drug Naltrexone May Have Anti-Cancer Effects
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_25807" align="alignleft" width="200"]
Dr. Wai Liu[/caption]
Dr Wai Liu
Senior Research Fellow
St George's University of London
London
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Naltrexone is a drug commonly used to wean addicts off alcohol and heroin, but clinical evidence has shown that when the drug is used at lower doses, patients would exhibit alter immunity. The symptoms that patients with a number of autoimmune diseases and those associated with chronic pain would ease significantly. Additionally, a number of reports showed patients with some forms of cancer would experience therapeutic benefit. Interestingly, the doses of the drug was crucial, and the non-conventional effects of naltrexone was only achieved at doses that were lower that what was conventionally used. We set about to understand why a drug could have such different effects when used at differing doses. Our results show that the genetic profile of the drug is subtly different at the two different doses, which helped us identify novel ways in which the drug could be used to induce an anticancer effect.
28 Jun Prescribing Naloxone To Patients on Chronic Opioids Reduces ER Visits for Opioid Concerns
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_25429" align="alignleft" width="170"]
Dr. Phillip Coffin[/caption]
Phillip O. Coffin, MD, MIA
Director of Substance Use Research
San Francisco Department of Public Health
Assistant Professor, Division of HIV, ID & Global Health
University of California, San Francisco
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: San Francisco has a longstanding naloxone distribution program that primarily works out of syringe exchange programs and is temporally associated with a substantial decline in opioid overdose death due to heroin or involving injection drug use. Over 90% of opioid overdose deaths from 2010-2012 were due to prescription opioids in the absence of heroin, and most of those decedents were prescribed opioids in primary care settings. Based on these data, as well as anecdotal reports from sites such as U.S. Army Fort Bragg in North Carolina - where providing naloxone to pain patients appeared to be associated with a radical decline in opioid overdose admissions to the emergency department - we implemented a naloxone prescribing program in the safety net primary care clinics.
We recommended that providers offer naloxone to all patients who used opioids on a regular basis, or were otherwise at risk for experiencing or witnessing an opioid overdose, although we only measured outcomes related to patients who were prescribed opioids for chronic pain. We also recommended that providers avoid the term "overdose" as that term does not properly reflect the epidemiology of opioid poisoning and is interpreted by many to mean intentionally consuming a large amount of opioids; instead we recommended saying things like: "Opioids can cause bad reactions where you stop breathing or can't be woken up." Providers prescribed mostly the jerry-rigged nasal device, with the atomizer and a brochure dispensed at clinic and the naloxone picked up at the patients' usual pharmacies, to approximate real-world medical practice.
26 Jun Alcohol: Better for Heart Attacks, Worse for Atrial Fibrillation?
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_25514" align="alignleft" width="126"]
Dr. Gregory Marcus[/caption]
Gregory M Marcus, MD, MAS, FACC, FAHA, FHRS
Director of Clinical Research
Division of Cardiology
Endowed Professor of Atrial Fibrillation Research
University of California, San Francisco
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Multiple epidemiologic studies have demonstrated that alcohol consumption likely increases the risk for atrial fibrillation and reduces the risk for myocardial infarction. However, the results have been conflicting, they generally all rely on self-report of alcohol consumption (which is known to be unreliable, particularly in those that drink more heavily), and there is almost certainly confounding related to an individual’s choice to consume alcohol (which in most settings is ubiquitously available). In addition, the relationship between alcohol and heart failure remains poorly understood, with evidence suggesting there may be both harmful and beneficial effects. Finally, the relationship between alcohol consumption and these various cardiovascular diseases (atrial fibrillation, myocardial infarction, and heart failure) have not been examined within the same cohort of individuals in a simultaneous fashion.
24 Jun Opioid-Restricting Laws Have Not Reduced Overdoses in Disabled Workers
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_25503" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Prof. Ellen Meara[/caption]
Professor Ellen Meara, PhD
Professor
The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Responding to a fourfold rise in death rates, between 2006 and 2012, states collectively enacted 81 laws restricting prescribing and dispensing of prescription opioids. Jill Horwitz, PhD, JD, said “states hoped passing a range of laws might help. So they are enacting small fixes — forbidding patients from “doctor-shopping,” and requiring doctors to use tamper-resistant prescription forms. They are also implementing major efforts such as prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) — online databases that allow law enforcement and clinicians to monitor prescriptions.”
21 Jun Cannabis Exposure During Pregnancy Linked To Changes in Brain Development in Childhood
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Hanan El Marroun, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Epidemiology The Generation R Study Erasmus, The Netherlands MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The background for the study is that little is known about the potential long-term effects of cannabis exposure during pregnancy on child development. The main findings are the prenatal cannabis exposure was associated with differences in cortical thickness in childhood. MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report? Response: That our findings suggest an association between prenatal cannabis exposure and cortical thickness in children. However, the results must be carefully interpreted, as there may be other factors involved that we did not take into account. Therefore, further research is needed to explore the causal nature of this association.20 Jun Why People With Cocaine Addiction Don’t Change?
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Karen Ersche PhD University of Cambridge Department of Psychiatry Brain Mapping Unit Herchel Smith Building Cambridge UK MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Dr. Ersche: Cocaine addiction is a major public health problem that is associated with significant harm - not just for the individual, but also for their families and for society as a whole. Without medically proven pharmacological treatments, therapeutic interventions mainly rely on psychosocial approaches, but behaviour in people with cocaine addiction remains extremely difficult to change. The impetus for this study was to find out why people with cocaine addiction are so resistant to change. One possibility would be that they have a strong tendency to develop habits, which means that they show patterns of behaviour that are not under direct voluntary control.12 Jun Marijuana Smoke Could Have Similar Effects on Lungs as Tobacco
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_25149" align="alignleft" width="200"]
Dr. Stefania Papatheodorou[/caption]
Stefania I. Papatheodorou, MD, PhD
Cyprus International Institute for Environmental and Public Health
Limassol, Cyprus
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States. Despite increasing use and acceptance of marijuana, both medically and recreationally, gaps remain in our knowledge regarding potential health effects.
In this study, we aimed to evaluate associations between recent marijuana use, exhaled Nitric Oxide (eNO) and pulmonary function. We performed a cross-sectional study of 10,327 US adults participating in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) in the years 2007 to 2012.
Exhaled Nitric Oxide was lower among participants who used marijuana in the past 0 to 4 days and those who last used marijuana 5 to 30 days before the examination compared with the never users. FEV1 was higher among participants who used marijuana within 0 to 4 days before the examination compared with those who never used marijuana, while FVC was higher in both past and current marijuana users compared with never users. The FEV1/FVC ratio was significantly lower among those who used marijuana in the 0 to 4 days before the examination compared with never users.