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As of 2008, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared that drug overdose had become the second leading cause of unintentional death, just behind motor vehicle fatalities. However, more recent evidence is showing an exponential surge in drug overdose deaths, caused specifically by prescription drugs. Prescription medications are still considered by some to be non-toxic or harmless, as opposed to illicit drugs, which are universally identified as being deadly. Prescription medication, however, can be just as toxic, and is accessible to anyone of any age who can purchase them legally with a prescription, find them in a parent’s medicine cabinet, or gain them by means of prescription forgery or diversion—also known as “doctor shopping.”
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Abuse of prescription drugs is growing rapidly around the world, with more people abusing legal narcotics than heroin, cocaine, and Ecstasy combined, the United Nations global drugs watchdog said on Wednesday.
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Dr. Conrad Murray’s homicide charge last week–in connection with the death of Michael Jackson–brought back into focus the complicated relationships some celebrities strike up with their personal physicians.
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A former University of Southern California (USC) assistant football coach stated in legal documents that he received prescriptions from team and university doctors he used to feed his addiction to painkillers, SportsIllustrated.com reported Monday.
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OxyContin and heroin are now being sold interchangeably on street corners, said Nils Frederiksen, a spokesman for the attorney general’s office in Pennsylvania. Oxycontin is a powerful narcotic painkiller that gives users a similar high to heroin.
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Steven Tyler, frontman of the band Aerosmith, has entered a rehabilitation facility to treat an addiction to painkillers that stemmed from 10 years of performance injuries. Tyler said he’s eager to return to work with his band mates.
