Stigma and safety fears have made daily dose tapering of opioid prescriptions more common. New research, however, shows tapering can occur at rates as much as six times higher than recommended, putting patients at risk of withdrawal, uncontrolled pain or mental health crises. The study — «Trends and Rapidity of Dose Tapering Among Patients Prescribed…

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) was associated with a reduction in self-reported cannabis use by up to 60 per cent among people with schizophrenia who have cannabis use disorder (CUD), according to a new study. The double-blind study is the first of its kind to investigate the effectiveness of rTMS in treating CUD in people…

Scientists have created a model of the rare pediatric eye cancer that more closely mimics the biology of patient tumors. Retinoblastoma occurs in very young children, and in some cases children are born with the disease. Inherited mutations in RB1 are one reason why this happens, but how these tumors form and what other factors…

Aided by a high-powered brain scanner and a 3D printer, researchers peered inside the brains of hundreds of multiple sclerosis patients and found that dark rimmed spots representing ongoing, ‘smoldering’ inflammation, called chronic active lesions, may be a hallmark of more aggressive and disabling forms of the disease. «We found that it is possible to…

Pioneering neural recordings in patients with Parkinson’s disease lays the groundwork for personalized brain stimulation to treat Parkinson’s and other neurological disorders. In a study published May 3rd in Nature Biotechnology, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences researchers implanted novel neurostimulation devices that monitor brain activity for many months, with and without deep brain stimulation (DBS)…

The pediatric brain cancer known as diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is almost uniformly fatal. In part, this is due to where and how it grows, forming as a diffuse net of cells in a part of the brainstem called the pons, which controls essential functions like breathing and swallowing. Another factor that makes DIPG…

Improving acute pain management after traumatic injury remains a priority for policymakers and clinicians as rates of injury and subsequent pain-related disability rise nationally. Yet, innovations in trauma pain management remain understudied. A 7-year prospective cohort study from the Corporal Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center (CMCVAMC), University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing),…

A scientific team has shown that the release of neurotransmitters in the brain is impaired in patients with schizophrenia who have a rare, single-gene mutation known to predispose people to a range of neurodevelopmental disorders. Significantly, the results from the research with human-derived neurons validated previous and new experiments that found the same major decrease…

Sense of smell or taste returns within six months for 4 out of every 5 COVID-19 survivors who have lost these senses, and those under 40 are more likely to recover these senses than older adults, an ongoing study found. Among 798 respondents to the ongoing COVID-19 smell and taste loss survey who had tested…

Although hormone therapy (HT) is the most commonly recommended treatment for menopause symptoms, research is ongoing for alternatives, especially nonpharmacologic options. Cognitive behavior therapy has previously been proposed as a low-risk treatment for hot flashes, but a new study suggests it may also effectively manage other menopause symptoms. Women today have more options than ever…