On August 13, 2012, a nephrologist reported to the Tennessee Department of Health (TDH) three cases of unexplained thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), a rare but serious blood disorder characterized by microangiopathic hemolytic anemia and thrombocytopenia. The annual incidence is approximately 1 per 100,000 population. Known risk factors for TTP include infection with Shiga toxin-produc...

A 3-year-old girl was transferred from an outside hospital to the emergency department after being found shivering and unattended outside of a public shopping area in winter. She presented with decreased mental status and possible hypothermia; she was lethargic and slipped in and out of consciousness. No cause for this alteration in her mental state was obvious; however, a physical examination ...

A highly sensitive method was developed to measure naloxone and its metabolite nornaloxone in human plasma, urine, and human liver microsomes (HLM). Naltrexone-d(3) and oxymorphone-d(3) were used as respective internal standards. Solid-phase extraction, using mixed mode extraction columns and 0.1 M phosphate buffer (pH 5.9), was combined with high-performance liquid chromatography interfaced by...

Perturbations of the expression of transporters and drug-metabolizing enzymes (DMEs) by opioids can be the locus of deleterious drug-drug interactions (DDIs). Many transporters and DMEs are regulated by xenobiotic receptors [XRs; e.g., pregnane X receptor (PXR), constitutive androstane receptor (CAR), and Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR)]; however, there is a paucity of information regarding the...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Opioids may inhibit the 5-HT transporter (SERT) and the noradrenaline transporter (NET). NET inhibition may contribute to analgesia, and SERT inhibition or interactions with 5-HT receptors may cause serotonergic toxicity. However, the effects of different opioids on the human SERT, NET and 5-HT receptors have not been sufficiently studied. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH We deter...

Opioid conjugate vaccines have shown promise in attenuating the behavioral effects of heroin or morphine in animals. The goal of this study was to extend this approach to oxycodone (OXY), a commonly abused prescription opioid. Haptens were generated by adding tetraglycine (Gly)(4) or hemisuccinate (HS) linkers at the 6-position of OXY. Immunization of rats with OXY(Gly)(4) conjugated to the car...

Abstract Introduction Urologists are not immune from the opioid epidemic. While narcotics still have a role to play in postoperative pain management, examining individual surgeries, such as inflatable penile prosthesis placement (IPP), identify opportunities limit use should be priority. Objective By querying large, global research network, we sought evaluate impact of narcotic prescription on ...

The dealers will not use it. Heroin dealers have explicit knowledge of the addictive properties of their product. The heroin addict is no longer the desperate character living under a bridge. She is a 17-year-old high school senior who runs out of her grandmother’s oxycodone. He is the stockbroker who weighs the economics of purchasing one oxymorphone on the street for $100 or ten doses of hero...