The Latest News from Our Field

Many primary care physicians have misconceptions about opioid abuse, a new survey finds. Almost half of internists, family physicians and general practitioners incorrectly believe that abuse-deterrent pills are less addictive than standard opioid painkillers, according to the survey.

Counselors at substance use disorder treatment programs say violence against them is common, a new study finds. More than half said they personally experienced violence, 44 percent witnessed violence, and 61 percent had knowledge of violence directed at a colleague.

A small study suggests using a form of virtual reality therapy may be useful in treating alcohol dependence. The treatment puts patients in situations similar to real life, and requires them to actively participate, Reuters reports.

A medication used to treat high blood pressure might be useful in addiction treatment, a study of rats suggests. The drug, called isradipine, erased memories that led the rats to associate a certain room with cocaine or alcohol.

Top headlines of the week from Friday, June 19- Thursday, June 25, 2015.

Increasingly, state lawmakers are recognizing the important role that naloxone, an opioid antagonist that blocks the effects of opioids in one’s body, can play in quelling the opioid crisis in the United States, and legislatures are enacting naloxone access laws at breakneck speed.

A review of 80 studies of medical marijuana concludes it may be useful for treating certain conditions, but the evidence is weak in supporting the drug’s use for many others. The researchers said any benefits of medical marijuana must be weighed against side effects.

Most edible marijuana products incorrectly list their levels of THC, the main psychoactive ingredient, a new study finds.

The global market for e-cigarettes and e-liquids almost doubled, to $6 billion, from 2013 to 2014, a new report finds. During that same period, cigarette sales decreased 0.4 percent, according to CBS News.

Universities should use social media to convince students to reduce their drinking, according to a group of alcohol and public health experts. They suggest borrowing tactics from the alcohol industry to target alcohol-related messages toward specific groups.

Use of naloxone kits resulted in almost 27,000 drug overdose reversals between 1996 and 2014, according to a new government study.

Rural areas hit hard by injection drug abuse are struggling to deal with the fast-growing problem, according to The Wall Street Journal. IV drug abuse is bringing large increases in HIV and hepatitis C to these communities.

A study conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found using marijuana and alcohol together impacts driving more than using either substance alone, Time reports.

Hawaii has become the first state to pass a law raising the legal smoking age to 21, Reuters reports. The law also outlaws the sale, purchase or use of e-cigarettes for anyone under 21.

A new study finds the number of drug overdose deaths rose in 26 states between 2009 and 2013. Overdose deaths decreased in only six states, Reuters reports.

The town of Needham, Massachusetts has found raising the tobacco sales age to 21 has significantly reduced the teen smoking rate, according to The New York Times.

Two weeks after the Police Chief of Gloucester, Massachusetts launched a program to provide treatment for people who come to the police station with illegal drugs and paraphernalia, instead of arresting them, 17 people have accepted the offer.

Many marijuana growers in states that have legalized recreational or medical marijuana use pesticides, without any federal regulations, according to NPR.

Top headlines of the week from Friday, June 12- Thursday, June 18, 2015.

A new smartphone app being tested by pain specialists at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston has the potential to help reduce opioid use in chronic pain sufferers, according to an expert who spoke recently at the International Conference on Opioids.

Marijuana “dabbing,” a potentially dangerous way of using the drug, is increasingly popular, a new study finds.

Methamphetamine seizures by border officers in Arizona have spiked as production of the drug increases in Mexico, the Associated Press reports. Officers seized more than 3,240 pounds of meth between October and May, compared with 3,200 pounds for the entire last fiscal year.

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives are easing their resistance to needle exchange programs in the wake of increasing heroin use in many of their home states, according to The New York Times.

Wider adoption of electronic prescribing systems among healthcare providers could help reduce prescription drug abuse, according to experts speaking at a recent conference.

The Colorado Supreme Court ruled Monday that employees in the state can be fired for using marijuana off the job. The case involved a paralyzed customer service worker who uses medical marijuana to help treat painful spasms resulting from a car accident, The New York Times reports.