Opioid Crisis: How COVID-19 Has Accelerated Addiction Risk
What happens when two epidemics meet? The opioid epidemic has been one of the most growing public health emergencies in American history. As such, it wasn’t long before the top two public health emergencies met and created a bigger crisis.
According to
provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released in December last year, over 81 003 drug overdose deaths occurred in the United States in the 12 months ending in May 2020 with a 24% nationwide increase in mortality from overdoses – this was around the time when the strictest lockdown measures were in effect.
Health experts are raising concerns over physicians prescribing opioids to COVID-19 "long haulers," saying it could lead to an increased risk of addiction among those who experience coronavirus symptoms long after having been infected.
COVID-19 survivors are at risk from a possible second pandemic, this time of opioid addiction, given the high rate of painkillers being prescribed to these patients, health experts say.
A new study in Nature found alarmingly high rates of opioid use among COVID-19 survivors with lingering symptoms at Veterans Health Administration facilities. About 10% of COVID-19 survivors develop âlong COVID,â struggling with often disabling health problems even six months or longer after a diagnosis.
For every 1,000 long-COVID patients, known as âlong haulers,â who were treated at a Veterans Affairs facility, doctors wrote nine more prescriptions for opioids than they otherwise would have, along with 22 additional prescriptions for benzodiazepines, which include Xanax and other addictive pills used to treat anxiety.
COVID survivors are at risk from a possible second pandemic, this time of opioid addiction, given the high rate of painkillers being prescribed to these patients, health experts say.
COVID-19 survivors are at risk from a possible second pandemic, this time of opioid addiction, given the high rate of painkillers being prescribed to these patients, health experts say.
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new study in Nature found alarmingly high rates of opioid use among COVID survivors with lingering symptoms at Veterans Health Administration facilities. About 10% of COVID survivors develop “long covid,” struggling with often disabling health problems even six months or longer after a diagnosis.
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COVID-19 survivors are at risk from a possible second pandemic of opioid addiction, given the high rate of painkillers being prescribed to these patients, health experts say.
A
new study in Nature found alarmingly high rates of opioid use among COVID-19 survivors with lingering symptoms at Veterans Health Administration facilities. About 10% of COVID-19 survivors develop a mysterious condition known as long COVID, struggling with often disabling health problems even six months or longer after a diagnosis.
For every 1,000 long COVID patients who were treated at a Veterans Affairs facility, doctors wrote nine more prescriptions for opioids than they otherwise would have. They also wrote 22 additional prescriptions for benzodiazepines, which include Xanax and other addictive pills used to treat anxiety.