Study reveals 27.8% of pain medications with high abuse potential make it all the way through the development process, compared to only 4.7% of medications with lower potential for abuse.
Exposure to the opioid fentanyl induces autism-like behaviors in mice by activating mu-opioid receptors in the anterior cingulate cortex.
Opioid use disorder affects genes associated with proinflammatory immune molecule encoding and genes associated with remodeling the extracellular matrix, suggesting the connection between neurons may be altered as a result of opioid use. Additionally, those with OUD have higher levels of microglia in the brain.
Researchers say older adults who feel lonely are twice as likely to use opioids to control pain, and 2.5 times more likely to be prescribed anti-anxiety medications and sedatives than those who have a more socially active lifestyle.
Alterations in long-term social behavior and gene expression were observed in the offspring of mice exposed to pain-killing opioids during pregnancy.
A newly developed experimental vaccine can diminish the fatal respiratory effects of carfentanil and fentanyl in rodent models.
Study explores the role the reward system plays in chronic pain, finding emotional and physical pain are bidirectional. Opioids, researchers report, ultimately make things worse.
Unlike long-term opioid use, frequent cannabis use does not increase sensitivity to pain.
A new study links high-dose opioid use to an increased risk of hearing loss and auditory problems. Researchers believe hearing problems may be a result of toxicity to the ear related to opioid exposure.
Study finds no evidence to suggest cannabis helps patients with opioid use disorder to stop using opioids.
35% of patients who used ketamine to manage pain reported significant side effects ranging from hallucination, out-of-body experiences, visual disturbances, and urinary dysfunction. 20% of the side effects were linked directly to ketamine, and 15% associated with ketamine in combination with other drugs.
Opiate exposure causes synaptic rewiring in the nucleus accumbens in addition to decreasing dendritic spines. The findings shed light into the neurobiology of opiate relapse.
