Noteboom The Law Firm

Veterans’ Prescription Drug Abuse To Be Studied

August 19, 2010 - Many veterans returning from combat come back to a new war. Attempting to assimilate back into the civilian world while suffering from psychological issues and traumas can become debilitating. Meanwhile, rising numbers of suicides among military personnel and veterans capture headlines.

Many veterans are given prescriptions to treat their various physical and mental issues. Problems arise when veterans are withdrawn from society, in pain, and have access to addictive prescription medication.

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has been given a federal research grant. UAMS will use their $288,714 to study the growing problem of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans abusing prescription drugs. UAMS will couple with the Central Arkansas Veterans Health Care system to perform the study. The study itself will consist of studying 6 years of information from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

Researchers are looking at the general success of the VA's procedures and policies for prescribing opioids, which are painkillers. The VA will announce new guidelines for prescribing opioids at some point this year.

There are at least tens of thousands of soldiers and veterans prescribed opioids every year to treat pain. With such a large amount of people taking pain killers, it is inevitable that some will eventually become addicted - especially when they are also suffering from mental disorders and are having difficulty fitting into a world where they are expected to thrive. Hopefully this research will also shed light on other treatment methods that may be more effective.