Both nationally and in Colorado, opioid use disorders have emerged as a significant public health concern. While prescription opioids can help people manage their pain, they also come with serious risks and potential complications. Prescription opioids should be prescribed and used carefully. These drugs are chemically similar to heroin and can increase the risk of addiction or overdose, even if taken as prescribed. This report summarizes fatal overdose...

This profile summarizes controlled substance prescriptions that Colorado residents received from 2014-2016, prescribing practices and patient behaviors, population-level health care encounters and deaths related to opioid overdose among Colorado residents. This information is from several sources: The Colorado Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP), emergency department visit and hospital discharge databases and death certificates.

Prescribers and dispensers have an obligation to effectively manage pain and improve function while reducing opioid related adverse outcomes. To assist health care professionals in discharging this duty, the Boards have adopted this Policy to ensure consistent, evidence-based for all Colorado prescribers and dispensers in their treatment of patients 18 years of age and older.

Nationally and in Colorado, drug use disorders and fatal overdoses remain significant public health concerns. Drug overdose deaths were further classified according to the involvement of specific substances, including prescription opioid analgesics (prescription opioids), illicit opioids (including heroin), methamphetamine and cocaine, and manner (intent) of the overdose, including unintentional (accidental), intentional self-harm (suicide), and those...

The availability of both opioid prescription medications and powerful illicit drugs like heroin and fentanyl has resulted in a deadly epidemic of drug abuse. Opioids and opiates are not confined to poor neighborhoods or inner cities; addicted victims are dying in communities throughout the United States. This easy-to-read, comprehensive guide uses recent statistics and up-to-date guidelines from government health and criminal justice agencies to educate...

Drugs that are derived from (or mimic the effects of) the poppy are some of humanity's oldest and most powerful. In fact, opiate drugs were the main tools of doctors for centuries. Unfortunately, misuse of opiates has reached epidemic levels, destroying lives and tearing families apart. This book looks at the history and effects of opiates and introduces readers to treatments that can help turn users' lives around. From caffeine and aspirin to heroin...

Abuse of heroin and prescription opioids in the United States has developed into an epidemic. This title explores how heroin and prescription opioids affect the body, the laws and policies concerning these drugs, the ramifications of addiction, and the road to recovery. Features include a glossary, references, websites, source notes, and an index. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards. Essential Library is an imprint of...

From the best-selling author of Dreamland comes a searing follow-up that explores fentanyl and the quiet yet groundbreaking steps communities are taking to end the opioid crisis nationwide.

An authoritative guide to understanding the current opioid crisis in America and how it can be solved.

"Lewis Cole--former Department of Defense research analyst--is hard aground at his beachfront home, recovering from major surgery, when threats and danger come right to his front door"--Amazon.com.