Researcher David A. Fiellin, M.D., at Yale School of Medicine is one of the latest recipients of a National Institute on Drug Abuse grant. Fiellin will spend the five-year grant of $2.9 million to continue his research on substance abuse.

Specifically, Fiellin’s research focuses on the evaluation of whether or not the gradual detox off of prescription opiate medications like OxyContin, Vicodin, Lortab, Norco and others using buprenorphine is effective. His studies will compound the already overwhelming evidence that Suboxone and Subutex (the brand names of buprenorphine) are working wonders in the world of substance abuse, both decreasing the number of relapses and the length of relapses when they do occur. NIDA has reported that Suboxone treatment has about an 80 percent success rate, a huge increase over the 20 percent success rate of similar treatments like methadone.

Fiellin says,  “The results of this study will help define the role of detoxification in the treatment of addiction to prescription opioid pain medication with buprenorphine in primary care.”

Fiellin’s research also has monetary support from the National Institutes of Health, the Health Resources Service Administration, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Here’s something I bet you didn’t know: the fact that martini time starts immediately after work and that Mom likes a little nip to “relax” is directly associated to the stress. That’s right. Drug and alcohol use often starts as an attempt to mitigate stressful situations, lubricate conversation and shake off discomfort with oneself and others. Right. You knew that. But now, there is a scientific study to back up the assumption. Or at least there will be.

Mustafa al’Absi, Ph.D. and team have the next four years to study the relationship between psychosocial stress and drug use with a $1.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Another 45 studies will soon follow by various other research teams, all funded by the NIH with the goal of better understanding how genetics and environments affect drug use, and called the Exposure Biology Program.

Says al-Absi: “What we are doing with this research is unique and innovative, particularly because we are moving the research out of the laboratory and into the real world. Success with this research could lead to important improvements in how people at high risk for medical or psychosocial problems are monitored and treated.”

In the meantime, we have access to one more thing that has moved out of the laboratory: Subutex and Suboxone. These buprenorphine-based drugs are great ways to help those who are physically addicted to opiates break that addiction and learn how to deal with stress and other sources of mental, emotional and physical pain in a healthier way. The best part is that, just like the prescription painkillers they replace, Suboxone and Subutex can be taken at home rather than at a drug rehab or drug addiction treatment clinic.

I say, if buprenorphine is a result of grants and seemingly ubiquitous research, then keep the research coming.

The results are in: A Saint Louis University of Medicine research team discovered that it is possible to block the natural effect of tolerance build up when an opiate drug is taken over a long period of time. What does this mean? That new pain management regimens can be developed without incurring the side effects caused by constantly elevated levels of opiate drugs—including opiate addiction.

Daniela Salvemini, Ph.D. is a professor of internal medicine at the Saint Louis University School of Medicine and the lead author of the study. She says: “We believe these findings represent a major breakthrough in understanding how tolerance to the pain-relieving action of morphine and other opiate medications develops — and how it can be prevented from happening in the first place.”

Opioid-based prescription painkillers are tricky. An excellent way to nullify the experience of pain, the body’s natural development of tolerance requires higher and higher doses to continue to block pain. This brings about nasty side effects that include lethargy, respiratory problems, constipation and, of course, drug addiction.

This is both good and bad. It’s good that those who are dealing with chronic pain and must take some form of opiate pain medication in order to get any relief at all. It’s not so good in that people who would do better to find healthier ways of pain management may instead opt to continue taking drugs like morphine, Vicodin, and OxyContin. The fact remains that even if tolerance does not develops, the side effects of respiratory depression, over-sedation, and addiction will still occur with long-term use. A smaller amount of a substance for a year as opposed to an increasing amount for six months can still wreak havoc on the body.

If you are using opiate painkillers like Percocet, Lortab, Norco and the more common Vicodin, OxyContin and morphine prescriptions, then your best, healthiest bet is to break your addiction immediately. Luckily another laboratory breakthrough has created buprenorphine, better known as Subutex and Suboxone, which allows you to treat your addiction to opiates without having to enroll in a drug rehab facility. You still need to find a doctor certified to prescribe the drug, however. That’s where Meditox comes in.

For more information on this study and others, check out The Journal of Clinical Investigation.