Brain cells (magenta) in the reward center of a rat’s brain release dopamine in response to opioids. According to a new study by WashU Medicine researchers, male and female rats with a chronic pain ...

Most people who misuse opioids take the drugs to relieve pain, but data suggest that men are more likely to misuse and overdose on opioids than women, even though they suffer less chronic pain.

While opioids are incredibly powerful pain management tools, they can also be highly addictive. Since 2013, the rate of deaths from an overdose due to synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, has steadily ...