When doctors order an opioid for a patient for the first time, they should prescribe a short-acting one without fills to reduce the chances of long-term use or addiction.
That’s the conclusion of a new study out of Oregon that examined prescription data from more than 500,000 patients in the Continue Reading →
Despite new laws, new statistics show that rates of prescription opioid abuse have doubled over the last decade, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. In 2012-13, about 10 million Americans, or 4.1% of adults, used opioid medications, such as Oxycontin and Vicodin, either without a prescription Continue Reading →
The FDA has approved the first-ever implant to treat opioid dependence, and advocates contend that Probuphine will help many addicts who either have trouble sticking with withdrawal treatment or who abuse the drug contained in it.
Probuphine is actually 4 tiny rods the size of matchsticks that are placed under Continue Reading →
Although the US is in the midst of a prescription opioid epidemic, a recent analysis of data reveals that the number of annual prescriptions for the powerful painkillers is showing a sustained decline for the first time in 20 years.
In 2013, 2014 and 2015, the number of prescriptions doctors Continue Reading →
Just 2 weeks after Prince apparently died of a painkiller overdose, an FDA advisory panel has voted unanimously to require physicians that prescribe opioid drugs to undergo mandatory training aimed at curbing its misuse.
While the training courses were made available four years ago to doctors, it is only voluntarily. And Continue Reading →