Genes may influence reactions to painkillers

Health

more>>

Diet soda habit as bad for teeth as meth addiction

Heavy consumption of diet soda can damage teeth as badly as methamphetamine or crack cocaine, a new study contends.

U.S. teen birth rate plummets

Teen birth rates in the United States are dropping sharply, especially among Hispanic teens, according to a new government report.

Too few kids use fast-food calorie info

Kids who eat fast food at least twice a week are 50 percent less likely to use calorie and nutritional information than kids who eat fast food less often.

American Cancer Society celebrates 100 years of progress

The American Cancer Society, which is celebrating on Wednesday a century of fighting a disease once viewed as a death sentence, is making a pledge to put itself out of business.

Simple steps can protect pets in weather disasters

In the aftermath of this week's deadly tornado, many people in Oklahoma are not only struggling to care for children and relatives, but also their pets.

More kids getting donor organs, but gaps persist

Over the last decade, the number of American children who die each year awaiting an organ donation dropped by more than half, new research reveals. And increasing numbers of children are receiving donor organs.

Americans still making unhealthy choices

The overall health of Americans isn't improving much, with about six in 10 people either overweight or obese and large numbers engaging in unhealthy behaviors like smoking, heavy drinking or not exercising.

Weather worries can threaten a child's mental health

The monstrous tornado that devastated Moore, Okla., on Monday, killing dozens of adults and children, is a stunning example of violent weather that can affect a child's mental well-being.

Student suicide may spur similar thoughts in teens

When a classmate commits suicide, teens are more likely to consider or attempt suicide themselves, according to a new study.

Sleepless nights may hurt school performance of kids with asthma

Urban elementary school children with poorly controlled asthma are likely to experience sleep problems and suffer academically, new research indicates.

WEDNESDAY, June 20 (HealthDay News) -- Genetics play a major role in a person's risk for addiction or unpleasant side effects when taking opioid painkillers, new research suggests.

Opioids, also called narcotics, are commonly prescribed to treat moderate to severe pain and include drugs such as morphine, methadone and oxycodone.

Some people experience debilitating side effects when taking opioids, while others have no problems. Similarly, some people can take these medications for months with little chance of addiction, while others are at risk within weeks.

To examine these patient differences, researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine assessed the responses of more than 120 twin pairs and non-related people who were given the opioid alfentanil, a short-acting painkiller prescribed by anesthesiologists.

One finding of the study was that identical twins were more similar in their responses to the drug than non-identical twins, which suggests that genetics are a major factor.

Specifically, the researchers concluded that genetics play a significant role in a patients' variability for the risk of opioid side effects. They accounted for 59 percent of the variability for nausea, 38 percent of itchiness, 32 percent of dizziness and 30 percent of slowed breathing.

In addition, genetics accounted for 36 percent of drug disliking and 26 percent of drug liking, which are measures of addiction risk, according to the study published online June 20 in the journal Anesthesiology.

"The study is a significant step forward in efforts to understand the basis of individual variability in response to opioids, and to eventually personalize opioid treatment plans for patients," Dr. Martin Angst, one of the two principal investigators, said in a Stanford news release.

"Our findings strongly encourage the use of downstream molecular genetics to identify patients who are more likely or less likely to benefit from these drugs -- to help make decisions on how aggressive you want to be with treatment, how carefully you monitor patients and whether certain patients are suitable candidates for prolonged treatment," said Angst, a professor of anesthesia and director of the Stanford Human Pain Research Laboratory.

Earlier this year, the same team of researchers published a study that found that genetics account for 60 percent of the variability in the effectiveness of opioids in relieving pain.

More information

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration offers a guide to the safe use of pain medicines.

*DISCLAIMER*: The information contained in or provided through this site section is intended for general consumer understanding and education only and is not intended to be and is not a substitute for professional advice. Use of this site section and any information contained on or provided through this site section is at your own risk and any information contained on or provided through this site section is provided on an "as is" basis without any representations or warranties.

Video Gallery

New vaccine guidelines

Flu-fighting foods