Addiction Disorders | Penn Today

Could these common medications help curb addiction?

In a Q&A, Anna Rose Childress of the Perelman School of Medicine speaks on the cycle of opioid addiction and her current clinical trials on the benefits of “add-on” medications with Kyle Kampman of the Perelman School of Medicine.

Predisposition to alcohol abuse is inherited, needs personalised treatment: Addiction expert

A study by Henry Kranzler of the Perelman School of Medicine suggests that treatment for excessive drinking should be tailored according to individual genetic makeup, with predisposition to alcohol abuse partially inherited from relatives.

A put-out cigarette standing on its end, next to half of another crumpled cigarette. In the background are two whole cigarettes.

Q&A

Parental nicotine use and addiction risk for children

In research done using rats, Penn Nursing’s Heath Schmidt and colleagues found that males that engaged in voluntary nicotine use had offspring more likely to do so, too. Some offspring also developed impaired memory and anxiety-like behavior.

Many empty prescription pill bottles, some with caps removed.

Program issuing mailed kits doubles rate of leftover opioids disposal

A Penn study finds that patients of orthopaedic and urologic procedures were more likely to dispose of their extra opioid tablets when they received kits in the mail to do so.

Elizabeth Heller’s lab uncovers how drug addiction can create lasting changes in genes

Leading a neuroepigenetics lab at her alma mater, Heller and the work of her 10-person lab is focused on molecular brain mechanisms, aiming to uncover chronic changes that can happen and keep happening in the brain long after exposure to addictive substances ends.

Three medical personnel in face masks and shields reviewing paperworks.

Overcoming barriers to treatment for opioid use disorder

New research shows that emergency departments can be a gateway to medications for opioid use disorder.

The origins of the opioid epidemic

The study, “Origins of the Opioid Crisis and its Enduring Impacts” examines the role of the 1996 introduction and marketing of OxyContin as a potential leading cause of the opioid crisis.

An ultrasound technician looks at an ultrasound on a screen in a hospital.

Pregnancy and opioid-use disorder: How to keep pregnant patients and babies healthy

At the Perinatal Resources for Opioid Use Disorder (PROUD) Clinic at Penn Family Care, patients are screened for mental health conditions and supported with integrated care before, during, and after pregnancy.

Barriers and facilitators in treating opioid addiction in the ER

Despite effective medications for opioid use disorder, such as buprenorphine and methadone, few people receive treatment. The ongoing challenge is to expand access to these lifesaving treatments to people who need them the most.

What makes addiction a disease?

Charles O’Brien and Daniel Langleben of the Perelman School of Medicine discussed the brain’s reward system and its relationship to addiction.

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