drugs
A Drug Problem Isn’t a Moral Failing
We may never know why Rush Limbaugh made the choices he did. But, just as we would never think of berating him for falling victim to the lung cancer that took his life, we also shouldn’t chastise him for misusing painkillers.
Read MoreWhy Does It Take So Long to Find a Cure for COVID-19?
Currently, there is no cure or vaccine proven to be effective against COVID-19. There simply hasn’t been enough time to conduct the required research. However, as the above figure illustrates, there is a gallant worldwide effort to find effective treatments and vaccines.
Read MoreWe Are At War: People With Chronic Pain Must Prepare
Think of COVID-19 as another natural disaster, and anticipate the same potential problems. Begin your planning immediately by talking with your doctor.
Read MorePunishment for Opioid Abuse Linked to Increase in Newborn Opioid Withdrawal
About half the states in the United States are willing to punish pregnant women in order to spare their babies the agony of being born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS). Ironically, their efforts are having the opposite effect.
Read MoreReplacing Opioids Has Just Been Made Harder
People in pain rely on scientific advances to find safer, more effective alternatives to opioids, and animal research is key to all early drug development. A recent announcement from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) threatens to change that, inhibiting science’s ability to replace opioids and create new life-saving pain interventions.
Read MoreWhich Drugs Do You Consider “Safe?”
Ten drugs that were removed from the market due to safety concerns over the last 30 years. It is interesting, and perhaps surprising, that four of them were anti-inflammatory drugs because most people presume these drugs are relatively safe.
Read MoreWho Is to Blame for Skyrocketing Drug Prices?
This article, in a slightly edited form, first appeared in The Hill on July 27, 2017. Drug Prices Are Soaring Across the board, drug prices are soaring. Even the cost of cancer medications are so high that some patients are delaying cancer treatments or skipping them altogether. But who is most responsible for higher drug prices: pharmaceutical…
Read MoreDetoxification as Performance Art
This article, in a slightly edited form, first appeared on Pain News Network on May 31, 2019. “Treatment Box: Rebekkah’s Story” won an Emmy for Outstanding Special Class – Short Format Daytime Program at the 46th Annual Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards. The 6-minute video was produced by The Truth About Opioids, which is an opioid…
Read MoreHow to Know If You Are Addicted
This article, in a slightly edited form, first appeared in Consumer Health Digest on May 15, 2019. Everyone has heard the phrase “opioid addiction,” but few understand what that really means. Journalists, patients, and even many doctors believe they know what addiction is, but they are often wrong. This leads many people to be diagnosed…
Read MoreDon’t Lose Sleep Over It
Black box warnings may be alarming. However, they are not meant to scare you into panicking and discontinuing medication that you need. Their primary purpose is to inform prescribers and patients about dangers they may pose.
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