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AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates prescription opioid abuse in the U.S. costs $78.5 billion a year, including healthcare and addiction treatment costs, law enforcement involvement, and lost productivity. Most disturbing is the human cost of opioid abuse: more than 115 people in the U.S. die each day after overdosing on opioid painkillers.

As part of the government-university partnership, AAU universities are working tirelessly to combat this public health crisis by better understanding the epidemic and conducting cutting-edge research on pain and addiction.

This is the fifth in a series on AAU university research that addresses major societal issues. The first four topics are Helping Solve the Fresh Water Puzzle, Helping Safeguard the Connected World, Researching the Brain, Seeking Cures and Research to Secure Our Energy Future.

Image of counselor speaking with young woman.

Answering the Call to Michigan’s Lack of Addiction Specialists

The number of opioid-related deaths in Michigan has hit an all-time high, requiring the resources of the state’s three major research universities and one of its largest health systems to tackle the problem.
Image: Cellphone displaying app

Smartphone App Monitors Breathing to Detect Opioid Overdose

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a cellphone app, called Second Chance, that uses sonar to monitor someone’s breathing rate and sense when an opioid overdose has occurred.
Illustration: Close to 9,000 children and teens in the United States died from opioid poisonings over the last two decades, representing a nearly three-fold increase in mortality rates.

Child Deaths from Opioids Nearly Tripled in Recent Years, Study Finds

Close to 9,000 children and teens in the United States died from opioid poisonings over the last two decades, representing a nearly three-fold increase in mortality rates, Yale researchers said.
Hospital Emergency sign

In Buffalo Emergency Departments, A Better Way to Treat Opioid Use Disorder

An innovative, cost-effective program at more than a dozen hospitals in Western New York provides medication-assisted treatment to opioid use disorder patients in emergency departments (EDs) and rapidly transitions them into long-term treatment at a community clinic.

Explore More: AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis

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Treating opioid disorder without meds more harmful than no treatment at all

Non-medication-based treatments for opioid use disorder may be more harmful than no treatment at all, a new Yale study finds.
Yale University | AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis | University Research

Therapy Can Support Medication Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder

Counseling may help keep people in treatment for opioid use disorder, according to Rutgers study
Rutgers University-New Brunswick | AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis | University Research

Study dispels misconceptions about treating opioid use disorder patients

To better understand the needs of patients with opioid use disorder and treatment options, Yale researchers analyzed the health records of 355 patients treated in a primary care facility at the APT Foundation in New Haven, Connecticut.
Yale University | AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis | University Research

For Knee Replacement, Physical Therapy Reduces Risk of Chronic Opioid Use

BU researchers find even low levels of physical therapy before or after knee replacement surgery can lower the odds of osteoarthritis
Boston University | AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis | University Research

New AI tool will predict patients at high risk for opioid use disorder and overdose

University of Florida researchers are developing a new artificial intelligence tool that will help clinicians identify patients at high risk for opioid use disorder and overdose.
Carnegie Mellon University | The University of Arizona | The University of Utah | University of Florida | University of Pittsburgh | AAU Universities Battle the Opioid Crisis | University Research