Articles related to Pain Medicine

According to surveys, up to 40% of cancer patients in the United States use cannabis, yet only one-third of doctors are comfortable advising them on it. Now, a small but significant study has found that cancer patients who use cannabis to treat their symptoms had reduced pain, better sleep, and an unexpected benefit: they appear to think more clearly after a few weeks of consistent use. The study, published in the journal Exploration in Medicine, is one of the first to look at how cannabis purchased via dispensaries, rather than government-supplied or synthetic kinds, affects cancer symptoms or chemotherapy side effects. It also sheds light on the large range of drugs used by cancer patients now that marijuana is legal in the majority of states.

According to the FDA, more than 101,000 fatal overdoses were reported during the 12-month period that ended in October 2022. Nearly half of fatal overdoses involve bystanders, but naloxone is only used in a small percentage of those situations. According to medical professionals who support the approval, there would be a critical opportunity to close this gap and lower the number of opioid-related deaths if naloxone were available over-the-counter.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved digital therapeutics, but insurance coverage has remained a problem. Some businesses have pushed for patient pharmacy benefits to pay for their software-based therapies, but AppliedVR is going in a different direction. A new HCPCS (Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System) code that describes the company’s treatment as a virtual reality cognitive behavioral therapy device with pre-programmed therapy software was granted by CMS to the company. The program complied with all five criteria set forth by CMS to qualify as durable medical equipment.

The convenience and comfort telehealth delivers for managing nonurgent and routine care for mental health, chronic disease, or pain is too good to revert back to always in-person appointments. And telehealth is changing the way providers compete — every system is now in direct competition with an expanded list of players. It’s also changing the way consumers select providers. For example, they are moving their care to those that can provide their entire health history online.

Nearly 25% of fentanyl powder seized in 48 states in 2022 contained xylazine. Xylazine causes severe injection site wounds that can require amputation and puts drug users at higher risk for overdose and death.

Pandemic-era telemedicine exceptions that currently allow telehealth prescription of Schedule II narcotics and stimulants without an initial in-person evaluation are to be ended on May 11.