pain relief

Opioid pain relievers to reduce overdose risk

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Researchers at the The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in Florida have developed opioid pain relievers that do not slow or stop breathing which is the cause of overdose. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 91 Americans die every day from opioid overdoses when opiates like heroin, oxycontin, and fentanyl slow and later stop a person’s breathing. The research shows that a range of compounds can deliver pain-blocking potency without affecting respiration. The study builds on two decades of research, where the researchres have long explored whether the painkilling pathway, the G protein pathway, could be unlinked from the breathing suppression pathway, the beta-arrestin pathway. The researchers had their doubts about being able to separate out the pathways and also wanted to know how much separation was needed to see analgesia without respiratory suppression. For the study, the researchers worked to develop … Read more

How to Avoid Opioid Addiction When You’re Prescribed Pain Medication

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Have you been prescribed pain medication, but worry that you might become addicted to it? This fear is common, and it’s also valid. Some pain medications can alter your brain in a way that doesn’t just keep the pain away, but can leave your body craving more than you once needed to have the same effect. Long-term use of pain medication, especially, can cause an addiction. Here’s what you need to know to avoid becoming addicted to your pain medication. What Pain Medications are Addictive? From drugs to help prevent migraines to prescriptions for menstrual pain, there is a medication for just about any type of pain you can have, from mild to severe. Some pose a rare chance of an addiction, whereas others can have more serious consequences. Unfortunately, virtually any medication carries a risk of causing an addiction … Read more

Comparing Ibuprofen and Etodolac on Swelling and Pain After Wisdom Teeth Removal

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An interesting article titled “Comparative Assessment of the Effect of Ibuprofen and Etodolac on Edema, Trismus, and Pain in Lower Third Molar Surgery: A Randomized Clinical Trial” appears in the 2016 Journal of Oral an Maxilofacial Surgery written by Julio Cesar Silva de Oliveira and et al. (vol. 74, pp. 1524-1530). The authors set out to explore if ibuprofen or etodolac is more effective in managing pain, swelling, and trismus after wisdom teeth removal. After wisdom teeth removal symptoms such as swelling, pain and limited mouth opening (trismus) can present. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are commonly prescribed for the rapid relief of moderate pain in inflammatory conditions and soft tissue trauma. The mechanism of action of NSAIDs is the inhibition of the release of cyclooxygenase (COX), an enzyme that is responsible for the production of prostaglandins (PGs). Ibuprofen is an NSAID which inhibits COX-1 and COX-2. Etodolac differs from other NSAIDs by being … Read more