1+ hour, 26+ min ago   (755+ words) Pain medicine has long confronted a seemingly unavoidable pharmacologic bargain: the drugs most capable of relieving severe pain could also produce euphoria, physical dependence, respiratory depression, and, in vulnerable individuals, addiction. Much of America's response to the opioid crisis has…...

2+ week, 6+ day ago   (197+ words) Motion sickness has plagued travelers for centuries, yet the standard remedies remain largely unchanged—often leaving users drowsy, dry-mouthed and unfocused. A new drug in late-stage trials targets the root cause: a sensory mismatch between what the eyes see and…...

1+ mon, 4+ week ago   (881+ words) American Council on Science and Health Chronic Disease Awareness Day: A Reminder That Pain Doesn't Take a Day Off Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease that can cause pain throughout the body. It can affect the joints, skin, kidneys, heart,…...

2+ mon, 2+ week ago   (412+ words) The government’s misguided attempt to address the opioid overdoses did more than change prescribing practices. It changed the relationship between doctors and patients, and not for the better. Before receiving opioid pain medication, many patients today are required to sign…...

3+ mon, 1+ week ago   (1525+ words) American Council on Science and Health Pain Exceptionalism: Why Medicine Accepts Pharmacology for Addiction but Not for Pain For many years, the medical establishment has argued, and in my view correctly, that addiction is a legitimate neurobiological condition that may…...

4+ mon, 1+ week ago   (632+ words) While pill mills, overdose, and irresponsible prescribing were real concerns, the response hardened into an overgeneralized culture of suspicion that abandoned legitimate pain patients. Science-based medicine can be distinguished from a narrower, politically distorted use of evidence that replaced clinical…...

5+ mon, 1+ week ago   (316+ words) We live in a nation of needless pain! According to CDC data from 2021, over 50 million Americans, (21% of adults) experienced chronic pain that persisted for more than three months. Among these, approximately 17 to 21 million US adults currently experience persistent, high-impact pain…...

10+ mon, 3+ week ago   (773+ words) What do pregnant women with high fevers and people with severe chronic pain have in common? Increasingly, both are being told to “tough it out.” The recent Tylenol-autism scare has dominated headlines, casting doubt on the only medication long considered…...

4+ mon, 3+ week ago   (139+ words) The following graphic illustrates this dose-response relationship in a simplified but informative way: Implications for New “Superopioids” and Policy This research echoes the need for nuance. Chronic opioid therapy involves predictable tolerance to euphoria and other effects, but that does…...

5+ mon, 1+ week ago   (935+ words) I’ve recently written about nitazenes (here and here), a class of deadly synthetic opioids that began showing up in the street drug supply in the past few years. Just what we don’t need. These bad boys are extraordinarily potent—often…...