Drugs used to treat Type 2 diabetes reduce alcohol cravings, use in individuals with obesity
In social media posts on the community network Reddit, users reported reduced cravings for alcohol when taking drugs intended to treat Type 2 diabetes and obesity. Across a number of threads — with titles such as “Did scientists accidentally invent an anti-addiction drug?” and “I don’t know if this is a side effect but … […]
Study Assuages Fears of Pancreatic Cancer Risk With GLP-1 Receptor Agonists
Several years after initiating treatment, GLP-1 receptor agonist users didn’t have a pancreatic cancer safety signal, a historical cohort study reported. Compared with basal insulin users, those on a GLP-1 receptor agonist didn’t have a significantly different risk for developing pancreatic cancer in the 5 to 7 years that followed (HR 0.50, 95% CI 0.15-1.71), […]
Trial Design, Treatment Options Spotlighted in Xylazine Conference
Longer observation periods following treatment and safety considerations for chronic and frequent users are among the many research issues about xylazine-laced fentanyl that need addressing, Rachel Wightman, MD, said at a meeting on mitigating risks from human xylazine exposure sponsored by the Reagan-Udall Foundation. “I take care of patients that are using fentanyl 10 plus […]
Recreational Drug Use More Common in Intensive Cardiac Care Than Many Admit
Many recreational drug users suffering acute cardiovascular events ended up in cardiac intensive care units (ICUs) without disclosing their drug use, according to the ADDICT-ICCU study conducted across France. The incidence of a positive drug screen was 11% among 1,499 consecutive patients admitted for acute cardiovascular events, with systematic urine testing revealing use of cannabis […]
Fewer cases of melanoma among people taking vitamin D supplements
Fewer cases of melanoma were observed among regular users of vitamin D supplements than among non-users, a new study finds. People taking vitamin D supplements regularly also had a considerably lower risk of skin cancer, according to estimates by experienced dermatologists. The study, conducted in collaboration between the University of Eastern Finland and Kuopio University […]
Vitamin D Ruled Out as Solution to Statin Intolerance
Vitamin D supplementation did not ease the muscle symptoms of statin users in the randomized VITAL trial, a substudy showed. Over 4.8 years of follow-up, 31% of statin users assigned to vitamin D reported muscle pain or discomfort lasting several days, which was the same proportion as those assigned placebo, with 13% of both groups […]
Post-Op Pain Control More Challenging for Cannabis Users
NEW ORLEANS — Cannabis users reported somewhat worse postoperative pain compared with people who did not use cannabis before surgery, according to a large observational study. The difference was modest, however, as cannabis users had time-weighted average pain scores after surgery that were 0.58 higher on a scale from 0 to 10 (P<0.001), and they […]
ED Meds Linked to Higher Risk of Ocular Adverse Events
Regular users of common medications for erectile dysfunction (ED) are at a higher risk for ocular adverse events, according to a large cohort study. Among over 200,000 men using phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5Is), the adjusted incidence rate ratio (IRR) for the composite endpoint of serous retinal detachment (SRD), retinal vascular occlusion (RVO), and ischemic […]
Multi-Day Hospital Stays for Banged Up E-Scooter Riders
E-scooter users broke bones from head to toe, and a third were so banged up, they were in-hospital for an average of 11 days, a researcher reported. In a study that tracked and compared the growth of e-scooter injuries from August 2016 to February 2018 — and from August 2018 to February 2020 after e-scooters […]