STATISTICS & TRENDS

STATISTICS & TRENDS

El Chapo Found Guilty on ALL Counts—What That Means for the Drug Trade

New York Supreme Court In a breaking news announcement, the notorious drug kingpin, Joaquin Guzman (known as El Chapo) was found guilty on all ten counts at his trial in New York. Joaquin has been in prison for three years, with his trial only just recently...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Curtailing Prescription Opioid Misuse Won’t Be Enough to Stop the Opioid Epidemic

When we as a nation face a significant problem or threat that we struggle to resolve, we tend to err in one of two ways. Either we become overwhelmed by the issue as a whole, feeling more or less incapable in addressing it, or we get too focused in on...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Increase in Pet Painkiller Prescriptions Could Indicate More Owner Misuse

Because of a significant increase in painkiller prescriptions to pet owners, veterinarians are being warned to watch for some owners who might be consuming these drugs instead of giving them to their pets.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Opioid Overdoses on the Rise Once Again amongst Youth

Our teens face various struggles, challenges and seemingly difficult situations that come with the overall experience of growing up. We’ve all been there, and we’ve probably seen these struggles mirrored in the faces of our own teen children and our...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Criminal Prosecution For Drug Crimes Should Result in Drug Rehabilitation—Not Jail

There was a recent article in the Washington Post which caught my eye. The report was about county prosecutor candidates competing for votes in Virginia. The article discussed the layered nuances of criminality and drug use.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Synthetic Opioids — The Drugs Responsible for Most of the Overdose Deaths in 2017

The U.S. struggles in the grip of an opioid crisis—perhaps the worst addiction epidemic that our nation has ever seen. And in the last few years, a new strain of opioids has entered the scene, creating a surge in the addiction crisis and a resulting...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Why Are We Losing So Many Older Women to Drug Overdose Deaths?

A recent analysis of drug overdose deaths shows a shocking increase in the number of older American women who are lost to overdoses of prescription opioids or even heroin and fentanyl. It’s vital to understand how this happens so these losses can be...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

How Could Hospitals Direct OD Patients to Treatment Centers?

Most of the time, when someone overdoses on drugs, they are taken to a hospital which treats the overdose. Of course, this is what happens when the addict is around someone who can call 911. But what happens when the patient recovers from the overdose?

STATISTICS & TRENDS

What Will It Take to Overcome the Opioid Crisis? Our Combined “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat”

Overcoming the opioid crisis will only be accomplished with the “blood, toil, tears and sweat“ (to quote Winston Churchill) of hundreds of thousands or even millions of people just like you. Learn how you can help.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Dental Painkillers, Young Patients and Addiction

New research indicates that, when a dentist prescribes opioid painkillers to teens and young adults following wisdom teeth surgery, they are also putting those same teens and young adults at risk for addiction.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

How States Are Reducing the Opioid Prescription Drug Crisis within Their Borders

It’s no longer a news story that our nation is struggling with an opioid addiction epidemic. It’s been going on for some time. This is an epidemic that started out with opioid pain relievers, and even though other opioid addictions have cropped up...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

How One Federal Program Is Striking a Deal with Healthcare Providers to Offer Addiction Treatment to Patients in Need

As the addiction crisis seems to grow and grow, surging forward no matter what we try to do to stop it, we’ve had to get a creative in our methodology for tackling the problem.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

New Study Reveals Opioids Not That Effective in Treating Pain

We’ve had the opioid pitch shoved down our throats (literally) for two decades now, and not only are we finding that these drugs are highly addictive and potentially lethal but now we’re finding that they don’t even work that well in their intended...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Senior Citizens: The Silent Generation’s Victims of the Opioid Epidemic

Apparently, the silent generation has lived up to their name in more ways than one. Not only was this the generation that worked hard, kept to themselves and stayed quiet, but this is also the generation that to this day is staying quiet about the fact...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Overdose Deaths Decline: Does This Mean We Are Successfully Fighting This Problem?

Starting in late 2017, the number of drug overdose deaths in the U.S. have finally begun to decline after decades of increases. But the reasons why might indicate that we are not actually getting to the root of this problem but only coping better with...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Direct to Consumer Pharmaceutical Advertising

According to a Washington Post article published February 2015, the United States and New Zealand are the only two countries that allow direct to consumer advertising for pharmaceutical products.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Dentists: An Unexpected Source of Opioid Misuse and Addiction

Let’s imagine for a moment that you are the parent of a teenage or young adult child. You’re told by your child’s dentist that his (or her) wisdom teeth are going to be a problem and they need to be removed. Dutifully, you make one or more appointments...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Drunk Driving and Drugged Driving—Big Problems on Our Roads

Drug and alcohol abuse can rob us of our family members and loved ones, our friends, our coworkers, and even our own lives in many different ways. Substance abuse with drugs and alcohol greatly impairs our abilities, reducing our cognitive function, our...

STATISTICS & TRENDS

How Celebrities Can Truly Save Many Lives

Celebrities seem to be most renowned for the very public trouble they get into, but many celebrities actually have found ways to help others by speaking out about their recovery from addiction.

STATISTICS & TRENDS

Helping Our Nation’s Veterans—Finding Better Pain Relief and Reducing Opioid Addiction Among Vets

Every year, thousands of veterans struggle with pain. According to Practical Pain Management, no less than fifty-five percent Between 2000 and 2011, approximately 5 million veterans (nearly 55% of VHA patients) were diagnosed with one or more musculoskeletal...