opioids – News Stories About opioids - Page 12

Rise in Painkiller Use During Pregnancy Alarms Experts

Alarming Find: Opioid Use
During Pregnancy on Rise

new study

Apr 14, 2014 7:46 AM CDT

Alarming Find: Opioid Use During Pregnancy on Rise

Prescriptions for strong painkillers surge despite unknown risks

(Newser) - The risks of taking opioid painkillers during pregnancy aren't fully understood but that hasn't stopped doctors prescribing them for large numbers of pregnant women, an alarming new study in Obstetrics and Gynecology finds. Some 23% of Medicaid-enrolled pregnant women were prescribed opioids like codeine and hydrocodone in 2007,...

Most Addicts
Get Pills
From Pals

Jun 21, 2011 2:35 PM CDT

Most Addicts Get Pills From Pals

Doctors only give pills to 1 in 5 abusers: Study

(Newser) - Looks like Michael Jackson was the exception to the rule. Most painkiller addicts get their pills from family or friends rather than doctors, according to a new study. Just 1 in 5 abusers use their doctor as their primary source for their drugs, and 69% get their drugs exclusively from...

Minorities Denied Potent Painkillers, Study Finds

Jan 2, 2008 4:14 AM CST

Minorities Denied Potent Painkillers, Study Finds

ER docs prescribe more drugs to whites

(Newser) - Minority patients are less likely than white patients to receive powerful painkillers in hospital emergency rooms, a new study has found. Researchers discovered that 31% of white people in pain were given opioid drugs—narcotic painkillers like morphine and codeine—while Hispanic patients got them 24% of the time and...

Hot Sauce
Could Be the New Morphine

Oct 30, 2007 11:09 AM CDT

Hot Sauce Could Be the New Morphine

Chemical in chili peppers that burns also numbs—for days

(Newser) - Doctors think they have a hot lead on an alternative to opioid pain killers like morphine: chili peppers. California-based researchers are dripping what is essentially a sterile version of hot sauce—containing capsaicin, the chemical that gives peppers their bite—directly into open wounds during surgery. Just like biting into...

Ouch—Doc's Trial Highlights Pain Issues

Apr 24, 2007 2:30 PM CDT

Ouch—Doc's Trial Highlights Pain Issues

Was he trafficking narcotics or treating chronic pain?

(Newser) - The drug-trafficking trial of a Virginia pain specialist demonstrates the slippery slope between treating chronic conditions and enabling addicts. Dr. William Hurwitz's jury heard the story of a patient with deblitating migraines who had been treated with anxiety medication that actually caused headaches—by another doctor who happened to be...