Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
CDC Study Finds Antihistamine Link In Opioid Overdose Deaths
Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified approximately 92,000 drug overdose deaths in 43 states and Washington, D.C., between 2019 and 2020, and found at least 18% involved or tested positive for antihistamines. More than 71% of those deaths included diphenhydramine, commonly known by its brand name Benadryl, according to the study published last week in the agency’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. (Rodriguez, 10/19)
More on the opioid crisis —
Authorities are again warning parents about the possibility of drugs mixed in with candy this Halloween after a big fentanyl bust at LAX. Someone tried to get through security at Los Angeles International Airport with bags of candy that contained some 12,000 pills of fentanyl early Wednesday morning. The opioid pills were contained inside packages of Skittles, Whoppers and SweeTarts candy. (10/19)
Law enforcement officers and even schools have it on hand. Now, pharmacists are urging members of the public to carry it too. (Friedman, 10/19)
An opioid-sparing protocol successfully reduces the need for opioid medication after outpatient arthroscopic knee or shoulder surgery, new research suggests. (Lowry, 10/18)
And 'Friends' star Matthew Perry says he almost died from opioid abuse —
In a new interview with People, ahead of the publication of his memoir, the 53-year-old Perry reveals that this crisis was far more grave than previously indicated. Perry explained that his colon burst due to opioid overuse. He ended up in a coma for two weeks and was given little chance of survival. (Ross, 10/19)
