Addressing The Opioid Epidemic Requires “New And Innovative Solutions.”

In an opinion piece for The Hill’s “Pundits Blog,” Jason Friesen, founder of Trek Medics International, and Jeff Schlegelmilch, a senior adviser at the nonprofit organization, discuss the opioid epidemic, stating that with the rising number of drug overdose deaths, “new and innovative solutions” are needed “to combat it from all angles.” Friesen and Schlegelmilch state that utilizing “life-saving treatments” such as naloxone, is necessary to defeat the epidemic. The authors describe efforts at the national level to address the opioid epidemic, such as the 21st Century Cures Act and the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, adding that although healthcare reform brings uncertainty, it also presents “an opportunity for states to approach the opioid epidemic with the full ingenuity our nation has to offer.”

ADA, Dental Industry Addressing Opioid Prescribing Habits

NPR reports many dentists are working to prescribe fewer opioids, “with state dental boards and associations issuing new guidelines for patients and practitioners.” The article notes that Dr. Paul Moore “studies the usefulness of ibuprofen and other” non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in pain management; Dr. Moore “worked on a recent update of the American Dental Association’s prescribing guidelines for opioids.” The guideline recommends dentists consider over-the-counter pain relievers as the “first-line therapy for acute pain management.” At the state level, Pennsylvania now “requires new dentists and those renewing their clinical license to get training in the best practices of opioid prescribing.” The article mentions that Pennsylvania dentist Dr. Joel Funari, who specializes in oral and maxillofacial surgery, participated in a working group in 2014 “to develop prescribing guidelines for dentists” in Pennsylvania. Dr. Funari and his colleagues found NSAIDS are “very effective” for treating dental pain. Their findings are published in The Journal of the American Dental Association.

FDA Now Offers Consumer Page On Opioids

The ADA News (1/20) reported that the Food and Drug Administration has anew consumer page listing questions for patients to ask their physicians, dentists, and other healthcare professionals before taking opioid painkillers. The new page also offers tips on opioid prescription storage and disposal. The article notes, “The ADA encourages dentists to talk to their patients about the dangers of using opioid painkillers for nonmedical purposes.” The ADA also “offers free continuing education courses to members and nonmembers alike that cover the latest techniques for recognizing when a patient may be seeking opioids for nonmedical purposes, and how to briefly counsel and refer those patients for appropriate substance abuse treatment.”

ADA Joins Surgeon General Campaign To Increase Opioid Abuse Awareness

The ADA News reports the Association is asking dentists “to take an online pledge to help curb the widespread abuse of opioid pain medications.” The clinician pledge is in support of US Surgeon Gen. Vivek H. Murthy’s national Turn the Tide campaign “to increase professional awareness about opioids abuse and mobilize health care professionals to improve their prescribing practices.” ADA President Carol Gomez Summerhays wrote in an Aug. 25 email to members, “Today, the ADA is asking dentists everywhere to take that pledge, regardless of whether you prescribe opioid pain medications or not.” Dr. Summerhays added, “The Turn the Tide pledge is another small way to show how we, as a profession, are committed stemming the tide of opioid abuse that has been devastating our families and communities.”

Researcher Working To Engineer New Type Of Painkiller To Combat Opioid Abuse

Business Insider reports that James Zadina, a researcher at the Tulane School of Medicine and the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System, has been “attempting to engineer a new kind of painkiller” for the past 20 years, work that has “taken on new urgency” as “opioid-related deaths and addiction in the United States reach epidemic proportions.” His pursuit is challenging since the mechanisms of painkillers that dull pain are also “the ones that too often lead to crippling addiction and drug abuse.” Scientists have been attempting for decades to “separate the addictive properties of opiates from the pain-reducing properties,” said David Thomas, an administrator at the National Institute on Drug Abuse and a founding member of the NIH Pain Consortium. “They kind of go together.” According to the article, Zadina believes he may be “close to decoupling them,” his effort representing one of many to help reduce opioid abuse.