Drug Facts in Media

Attitudes towards cannabis products for medicinal use need to change with much greater appropriate use of such products to help alleviate patients' pain, suggests new research.

Children who take oral steroids to treat asthma or autoimmune diseases have an increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and blood clots, according to new researchers. The study is the first to quantify these complications of oral steroids in a nationwide population of children.

A recent study found that people with substance use disorders (SUDs) are more susceptible to COVID-19 and its complications. The findings suggest that health care providers should closely monitor patients with SUDs and develop action plans to help shield them from infection and severe outcomes.

A new study compares adolescent siblings to determine the impact of early and frequent use of marijuana on cognitive function. This study contrasts with previous studies by finding that moderate adolescent cannabis use may have adverse effects that cannot be explained by the genetic or environmental factors that siblings may have in common.

Researchers are examining the beneficial effects of cortisone in order to lay the groundwork for the development of similar drugs with fewer side effects.

A new study published reveals that three-quarters of participants in an inpatient addiction intervention program came into the hospital using more than one substance. The findings suggests that a singular focus on opioids may do more harm than good if doctors overlook the complexity of each individual's actual substance use.

Higher rates of e-cigarette and marijuana use in U.S. states did not result in more e-cigarette or vaping-related lung injuries (known as EVALI), a new study from the Yale School of Public Health finds.

Cannabinoid-containing products may alter the effects of some prescription drugs, according to researchers. They published information that could help medical professionals make safe prescribing choices for their patients who use prescription, over-the-counter or illicit cannabinoid products.

A new study confirms the findings of the large scale British trial of steroid use for COVID-19 patients and advances the research by answering several key questions: Which patients are most likely to benefit from steroid therapy? Could some of them be harmed? Can other formulations of steroids substitute for the agent studied in the British trial?

Cannabis appears to be a safe and potentially effective treatment for the chronic pain that afflicts people with sickle cell disease, according to a new clinical trial.

Researchers used single-nucleus RNA sequencing to compare transcriptional responses to acute cocaine in 16 unique cell populations from the brain nucleus accumbens. The atlas is part of a major study that used multiple cutting-edge technologies to describe a dopamine-induced gene expression signature that regulates the brain's response to cocaine. The study shows neurobiological processes that control drug-related adaptations and reveals new information about how transcriptional mechanisms regulate activity-dependent processes within the central nervous system.

Researchers find that the benefits of inhalers for asthma sufferers outweigh the risks of contracting coronavirus, following concerns raised after WHO warned that steroids could reduce immunity.

As many as 7% of moms-to-be use marijuana while pregnant, and that number is rising fast as more use it to quell morning sickness. But new research suggests such use could have a lasting impact on the fetal brain, influencing children's sleep for as much as a decade.

In a sign that designer drugs are becoming more prevalent in Australia, synthetic cathinones -- commonly known as 'bath salts' -- have been detected in the nation's wastewater in the largest study of its kind in the country.

A study of 121 regular users of legal market cannabis found that higher potency does not necessarily mean greater intoxication. It also found that while balance and memory are impaired immediately after use, that impairment fades within in an hour.

People suffering from post-traumatic distress disorder report that cannabis reduces the severity of their symptoms by more than half, at least in the short term, according to a recent study.