Opioids are the strongest analgesics available and are crucial in the treatment of acute and chronic pain. The line between these critical medications and how they are used beyond standard therapeutics in cases such as abuse, misuse, and medication e...
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that interferes with multiple aspects of daily functioning. Malingering or feigning of symptoms can be a major challenge during ADHD assessment. Stimulant medication abu...
Background/Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the frequency and predictors of adverse drug events (ADEs) related to medication abuse, misuse, and dependence, along with serious adverse events (SAEs), and to develop machine learning models to de...
Sustaining a well-designed healthcare intervention justifies the resources allocated during its conceptualization and implementation and maximizes its clinical benefits, but staff influences on sustainment have been studied insufficiently. This study...
23 March 2026
Prescription drug misuse disproportionately impacts American Indian communities, yet limited research explores how trust in healthcare settings affects behaviors related to prescription drug use. Using data from a 2017 cross-sectional survey of 781 A...
Background: Infections caused by antibiotic resistance pose a serious global health threat, undermining our ability to treat common infections and deliver complex medical procedures. Antibiotic misuse, particularly in low-–middle-income countri...
14 October 2022
This study examines demographic factors which may influence opinions concerning medical students’ self-care and substance use behaviors as a means of providing insights into how future doctors view these issues compared to Australian doctors an...
8 April 2021
We aimed to evaluate the knowledge-based attitudes of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance among medical students of Medical University of Warsaw using the questionnaire prepared by the study’s authors. In May–June 2018, we carried out a cross-secti...
18 July 2025
Background: Non-medical use of prescription stimulants is increasing among college students worldwide. While intended for ADHD treatment, many students use these substances to improve their concentration and academic performance. Despite global resea...
Background: Antibiotic misuse is a major global health issue, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where inappropriate use contributes to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Inappropriate antibiotic use is exacerbated in LMICs by pre...
(1) Background: Over the last decade, misuse and diversion of medications has appeared to be increasingly concerning phenomena, including a range of different molecules. As current knowledge on the abuse of centrally acting anticholinergics is limite...
Stimulants are effective in treating attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Psychiatrist Charles Bradley first made this discovery in 1937 when he found that children treated with amphetamines showed improvements in school performance and b...
Introduction: Given the increasing adult use of amphetamine and methylphenidate and their high misuse potential, we examined suspected suicide attempts and other intentional misuse and medical outcomes and their associations with co-used other substa...
Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the most significant current public health issues, which is driven crucially by the misuse and overuse of antibiotics. Antibiotics are still available without a prescription in many underdeveloped...
Recently, a range of prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) drugs have emerged as being used recreationally, either on their own or in combination with other substances, both licit and illicit, including new psychoactive substances (NPS). Among them...
Background: The opioid crisis in the US is a severe public health issue, prompting pharmacists to adopt various strategies for prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery. Despite progress, barriers persist. Results: This commentary examines...
Misuse of over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription-only medicines (POMs) is increasingly recognised as a public health and medicine-safety concern. Although specialist substance misuse services (SMS) increasingly support people affected by OTC/POM mis...
Drug-related iatrogenesis is an important issue in the elderly population, and preventing iatrogenic accidents helps to reduce hospitalizations. Our study’s objective was to evaluate prescriptions in the geriatric population of our establishment. The...
Background: Self-medication (SM) is a growing phenomenon worldwide that has recently been classified as one of the most serious public health problems. SM can result in an incorrect self-diagnosis, inappropriate treatment, potential adverse reactions...
Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) have emerged as a potent therapeutic option for the management of obesity, demonstrating exceptional efficacy in several large-scale clinical trials. Despite their promising therapeutic outcomes,...
Background/Objectives: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a critical global health threat, rendering common bacterial infections increasingly difficult to treat and placing considerable strain on healthcare systems. This study assesses public aware...
The present contribution proposes a new design for adsorptive microextraction devices that promote a user-friendly and greener analytical approach. Novel Sorbent Strip Microextraction (SSμE) devices were made using a flexible adhesive film coated...
Background: Synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs, commercially known as “Spice”) have become a leading cause of substance-induced psychosis worldwide. These compounds show strong associations not only with acute psychotic episod...
The literature emphasizes the importance of addressing the misuse of ADHD medications as a potential significant healthcare issue within the general population. Nevertheless, there are no systematic reviews that specifically examine whether the misus...
Controversies related to the concept and practice of responsible authorship and its misuse have been among the most prominent issues discussed in the recent literature on research integrity. Therefore, this paper aims to address the factors that lead...
Several over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are known to be misused. Among them are opioids such as codeine, dihydrocodeine, and loperamide. This work elucidates their pharmacology, interactions, safety profiles, and how pharmacology is being manipulated to...
23 August 2023
Background: There have been multiple reported pharmacy initiatives to reduce opioid misuse and accidental overdose to address our nation’s public health crisis. To date, there has not been a description in the literature of a community pharmacy...
This study examined the prevalence and psychosocial predictors of the non-medical use of prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medications and compared these to cigarette, marijuana, and alcohol use in a cohort of early adolescents (N = 1887) aged...
22 June 2022
This study examines how work stress affects the misuse of prescription drugs to augment mental performance without medical necessity (i.e., cognitive enhancement). Based on the effort–reward imbalance model, it can be assumed that a misalignmen...
Benzodiazepine misuse is most prevalent among young adults aged 18–25 and has been linked to recreational use, self-medication, and psychosocial stressors. Childhood emotional neglect is associated with adverse mental health outcomes and increa...
Background: In Israel, fentanyl and pregabalin prescription rates for pain management have increased over the years. However, Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) implemented restrictions on opioid prescribing in 2022, potentially reducing fentany...
(1) Background: Corticosteroids are commonly used for a variety of conditions, but their use might come with significant side effects. Self-medication practices increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, potentially favoring corticosteroid misuse. Studi...
19 February 2020
Background and Objective: Several over-the-counter drugs have been documented as an essential issue in the community pharmacy setting owing to their liability to abuse. Pharmacists act as a critical monitor for these concerns and evaluate the serious...
Codeine is derived from morphine, an opioid analgesic, and has weaker analgesic and sedative effects than the parent molecule. This weak opioid is commonly used in combination with other drugs for over-the-counter cough relief medication. Due to the...
30 August 2022
Background: Certain alcohol misuse patients heavily utilise the Emergency Department (ED) and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and may present with intoxication or long-term sequelae of alcohol misuse. Our study explored reasons for repeated ED/EMS u...
10 June 2022
Background: The need for workplace substance use prevention programmes globally and in South Africa is driven by the growing problem of substance use and the associated burden on the health and welfare of employees, their families and organizations....
Beginning in the late 1990s, a movement began within the pain management field focused upon the underutilization of opioids, thought to be a potentially safe and effective class of pain medication. Concern for addiction and misuse were present at the...
25 January 2019
Massive misuse of antibiotics is one of the most important reasons for antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Misconceptions of antibiotics contribute to antibiotic misuse behaviors. This study aims to examine whether university students hold the misconcept...
Firefighters are vulnerable to opioid misuse given the adverse effects their occupation has on mental and physical health. Yet there are limited data on opioid misuse within this population. This study examined the prevalence of illicit prescription...
Background: Effective medication management, disposal, and donation are vital for public health and environmental sustainability. Improper handling of medications can lead to drug misuse, accidental poisoning, and environmental damage. This study exa...
The aim of this paper was to provide insights into alcohol misuse within UK veterans to inform as to whether their presentations differ from the general public. This was done by exploring differences in the severity of alcohol misuse between UK veter...
The overuse or misuse of antibiotics, either when recommended by physicians or administered through self-medication at the time of infection, has caused drug-resistant pathogens to become a major healthcare issue, with millions of reported cases ever...
Youth athletes are often prescribed opioids after sustaining sport-related injuries, and because of their age, warrior-like culture in sport, and the desire to perform at the highest level, they are at risk for opioid misuse. Due to the nature of spo...
Background: Exposure to prescription opioids during adolescence is associated with an increased risk of future opioid misuse. The pervasive and growing impact of the opioid epidemic requires evidence-based, co-designed interventions targeted at adole...
In the past twenty years, the consumption of opioid medications has reached significant proportions, leading to a rise in drug misuse and abuse and increased opioid dependence and related fatalities. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine w...
Background and Objectives: Self-medication and inappropriate use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and antibiotics are major public health concerns, particularly in settings with variable access to healthcare. Understanding patterns o...
Antibiotic misuse is one of the major drivers of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In India, evidence of antibiotic misuse comes largely from retailers as well as formal and informal healthcare providers (IHCPs). This paper presents the practices and p...
Antibiotic resistance is a significant public health concern, with numerous studies linking antibiotic consumption to the development of resistance. As medical students will play a pivotal role in prescribing antibiotics, this research aimed to ident...
The phenomenon of bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a rapidly growing global problem. Overuse and misuse of antibiotics as well as self-prescription are among the most important causes contributing to the growth of antibiotic resistance in...
Traumatic injuries represent a significant public health challenge, affecting millions worldwide annually and necessitating acute pain management that frequently involves the use of opioid analgesics to mitigate discomfort and facilitate recovery. Al...
of 6