News Feature Channel: Substance Abuse

TIPSHEET: Counseling Experts Present Latest Research at the 2025 ACA Conference & Expo, March 27-29 in Orlando, Florida

American Counseling Association — Mon, 24 Mar 2025 10:30:33 EST

More than 150 posters to be presented; counselors are available to comment on mental health topics ranging from substance use and addiction to wellness and self-care and more.

Xylazine Detected in U.S.-Mexico Border Drug Supply, Study Finds

University of California San Diego — Thu, 20 Mar 2025 11:00:00 EST

Researchers at UC San Diego have confirmed the presence of xylazine in the illicit drug supply at the U.S.-Mexico border. While xylazine remains less common in the Western U.S., border cities serve as key trafficking hubs and may have higher rates of emerging substances.

Available Evidence Supports Continuing Buprenorphine During Episodes of Acute Pain for People with Opioid Use Disorder

American College of Physicians (ACP) — Mon, 17 Mar 2025 17:00:00 EST

A systematic review analyzed research on the benefits and harms of acute pain interventions among people with opioid use disorder (OUD).

Does Getting ADHD Drugs via Telehealth Increase Addiction Risk?

Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan — Wed, 05 Mar 2025 20:10:45 EST

Teens and adults who started on stimulant medications for ADHD during via telehealth were on the whole no more likely to develop substance use disorders a year later, but young adults age 26-34 did have a higher risk. The findings could inform telehealth policy.

Compound Harnesses Cannabis' Pain-Relieving Properties Without Side Effects

Washington University in St. Louis — Wed, 05 Mar 2025 11:00:00 EST

Researchers at WashU Medicine and Stanford University developed a compound that relieves pain in mice but doesn't affect the brain, thereby avoiding mind-altering side effects and abuse potential. The custom-designed molecule, derived from cannabis, may provide an alternative to opioids for treating chronic pain.

Neuroscience Grads Studied How to Make Opioids Safer

Furman University — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 19:05:42 EST

Neuroscience grads studied how to make opioids safer

Novel Research Reveals How Adversity Shapes the Developing Brain and Its Connection to Future Health Risks

Virginia Tech — Mon, 24 Feb 2025 18:00:58 EST

While researchers have long spotlighted the role childhood abuse, poverty, and substance use play in human development, Virginia Tech's Jungmeen Kim-Spoon is pulling back the curtain on what actually happens inside the brains of the young adults affected. For the past 10 years, Kim-Spoon and her colleague Brooks Casas have co-led a research team that has tracked the brain function of teens.

Critical Need for Regulation to Protect People with Substance Use Disorder From Exploitative Marketing Practices on Social Media

Research Society on Alcoholism — Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:00:00 EST

People seeking online support for addiction recovery may encounter cynical marketing by the addiction treatment industry that sometimes prioritizes financial gain over clients' health and well-being, according to a study of public discourse around substance use recovery on Twitter.

Co-Prescribed Stimulants, Opioids Linked to Higher Opioid Doses

Ohio State University — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 08:35:58 EST

The combination of prescribed central nervous system stimulants, such as drugs that relieve ADHD symptoms, with prescribed opioid medications is associated with a pattern of escalating opioid intake, a new study has found.

MEDIA ADVISORY: American Counseling Association to Hold 2025 ACA Conference & Expo March 27-29 in Orlando

American Counseling Association — Wed, 19 Feb 2025 19:40:13 EST

The American Counseling Association, the world's largest association representing more than 60,000 professional counselors, will hold its 2025 ACA Conference & Expo March 27-29 in Orlando.

Telehealth May Be Closing the Care Gap for People with Substance Use Disorder in Rural Areas

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Health Sciences — Wed, 12 Feb 2025 11:00:00 EST

People who live in rural areas may be benefiting from telehealth as a modality for substance use disorder treatment to a greater extent than their urban counterparts. Meanwhile, people with Medicaid are less likely to use telehealth than those with Medicare Advantage or commercial insurance

Rutgers Center for Recovery and Wellbeing Dedicated in Plainfield

Rutgers University-New Brunswick — Tue, 04 Feb 2025 21:25:06 EST

The Rutgers Center for Recovery and Wellbeing, in Plainfield, N.J., opens to provide hope for New Jerseyans trying to escape the cycle of substance use disorders.

Neurosurgery Submits Comment to Senate Judiciary Hearing on Controlled Substances

Tue, 04 Feb 2025 20:35:15 EST

The hearing aims to examine the public health and safety threats posed by illicit fentanyl and its analogues and to evaluate the need for permanent class-wide scheduling of these substances under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Declining US Drug Overdose Deaths: Evidence-Based Prevention and Treatment Working

Johns Hopkins School of Nursing — Tue, 04 Feb 2025 09:45:50 EST

A new editorial in the BMJ suggests that a 22% decrease in overall U.S. drug overdose deaths over 2023/2024 signals that investments in overdose prevention and substance use disorder treatment are working.

Online Curriculum Aids Prescribers in Fighting Opioid Addiction Across Appalachia

The Rothman Orthopaedic Institute Foundation for Opioid Research and Education — Mon, 03 Feb 2025 10:20:37 EST

The Appalachian region continues to experience disproportionately higher opioid overdose rates and related fatalities. According to the most recent Center for Disease Control and Prevention, fully one-half of the 16 states with the highest overdose death rates are Appalachian states.

Scientists Discover How Genetic Risk for Alcoholism Changes Brain Cell Behavior

Rutgers University-New Brunswick — Mon, 03 Feb 2025 09:15:07 EST

A Rutgers Health study may help explain why some people are more susceptible to developing drinking problems.

Standardizing Provider Assessments Reveals Important Information About Gun and Opioid Access for Veterans at Risk of Suicide

Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania — Tue, 28 Jan 2025 11:00:00 EST

Standardizing an assessment process currently used by doctors during care discussions with veterans at risk for suicide in other context could shed more light on the risks related to firearms and opioids.

Virginia Tech Researchers Ask How Many Attempts It Takes to Quit Substance Abuse

Virginia Tech — Mon, 27 Jan 2025 17:15:28 EST

Relapse is common when someone is trying to quit, regardless of whether they're giving up opioids or alcohol or cigarettes. To better inform treatment, researchers with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC's Addiction Recovery Research Center wanted to better understand how the experience of quitting differed across substances.

UTEP Researchers Secure $2.8M NIH Grant to Advance Understanding of Addiction-Related Decision-Making

University of Texas at El Paso — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 19:20:34 EST

Researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso have been awarded a $2.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to explore the neurobiological mechanisms behind drug-taking behaviors and addiction. The study will focus on striosomes, clusters of cells within the brain that play a pivotal role in decision-making,

Preventing Substance-Use Disorders in Teenagers

Universite de Montreal — Thu, 16 Jan 2025 12:00:04 EST

Two 90-minute workshops in Grade 7 can help students have fewer problems with drugs and alcohol by the time they graduate, UdeM psychologist and clinical researcher Patricia Conrad finds in a study.