ROCHESTER, Minn. — Dispose of unneeded medications safely during National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, April 22.

Mayo Clinic, in collaboration with the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office, Olmsted Medical Center, Zumbro Valley Medical Society and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), will host a community drop-off event to collect unused or expired medications.

"The Olmsted County Sheriff's Office and Violent Crimes Enforcement Team (VCET) are proud to team up with Mayo Clinic and other community partners to participate in the National Drug Take Back program," says Capt. Tim Parkin of the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office.

Anyone can anonymously drop off medications in Rochester on April 22 from 9 a.m.–1 p.m., at Mayo's Gonda Building, at the west entrance drop-off circle located at Third Ave. Southwest.

"The National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is a fantastic opportunity to learn more about drug misuse and abuse," says Benjamin Lai, M.B., B.Ch., B.A.O., a family medicine physician and chair of Mayo Clinic's Opioid Stewardship Program. "Mayo Clinic is proud to partner with our community to host this event."

DEA Drug Take Back Day events offer a safe, free and convenient means to dispose of unnecessary medicines stored in the home that can be susceptible to abuse and theft. The events also provide an opportunity to educate the public about related community health issues.

Medications, including controlled substances such as opioids, stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens and anabolic steroids, will be collected.

"Many of our communities continue to be plagued by high rates of drug overdoses. One step we can all take to address this problem head-on is to reduce the amount of unused medications we have in our communities, especially high-risk medications such as opioids," says Dr. Lai.

Medications accepted for safe disposal at take back locations include:

• Prescription drugs
• Over-the-counter medications
• Ointments, patches, creams, inhalers and vials
• Pet medications
• Nonaerosol medications

Liquid medications must be in the original container. Vape pens and other e-cigarette devices are accepted, with the batteries removed. 

Unused prescription drugs thrown in the trash can be retrieved and abused, or illegally sold. Medications that are improperly disposed by flushing them down the toilet pose a potential health and environmental hazard. Proper disposal of unused drugs saves lives and protects the environment.

Drop-off events also are taking place Saturday in other communities in Minnesota, Wisconsin and across the nation. If you live outside Rochester, you can find a drop-off location near you by visiting the DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day website.

Community members unable to attend the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day event can dispose of medications safely anytime in the prescription drug collection box at the Olmsted County Government Center. The box is in the vestibule of the Adult Detention Center and is accessible around the clock every day of the year.

Alert to journalists: Journalists interested in covering the event are invited to arrive between 10–11 a.m. Mayo Clinic Ambulance paramedics who have experience treating drug overdose patients will be available for interviews. Also available for interviews will be representatives from Mayo Clinic, the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office, Olmsted Medical Center and Zumbro Valley Medical Society.

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About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing. Visit the Mayo Clinic News Network for additional Mayo Clinic news.

Media contact:

• Vincent Jacobbi, Mayo Clinic Communications, newsbureau@mayo.edu

The post Save lives this Take Back Day; safely dispose of unused medications appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Reporter Vivien Williams talks with Dr. Michael Hooten, a pain management specialist at Mayo Clinic, about why sharing opioid pain medications can be dangerous.

Watch: The Mayo Clinic Minute

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video pkg (0:59) is in the downloads. Read the script.

“Any prescription medication should never be shared, especially opioids.”

Dr. Hooten gives two big reasons why you should not share opioid pain medication.

“They are dangerous. They could have adverse effects that the individuals may not even recognize.”

Plus, sharing opioids is against the law. A study shows 1 out of 5 people who were prescribed opioids shared them, mostly to help friends or family with pain. And almost half of the people in the study did not know what to do with leftover pills.

“My recommendation to patients is if there’s any medication left over at all, it needs to be disposed of. It needs to be out of the house. This is not a medication you want sitting in the cabinet for some use in the future.”

Dr. Hooten says rules about medication disposal vary state by state. Visit the U.S. Food and Drug Administration website to find out how to dispose of medication safely.

The post Mayo Clinic Minute: Do not share pain medication appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

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Medication errors are very common. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 82 percent of adults are on at least one medication and 29 percent take five or more. With numbers such as those, it's no wonder mistakes happen. The CDC also says adverse drug events, which are instances where medication errors cause harm, are responsible for an approximated 700,000 emergency department visits a year. Some typical medication errors include:

• Taking over-the-counter products that contain acetaminophen when you're already taking a prescription pain medicine that contains acetaminophen, possibly exceeding the recommended dose and increasing the risk of liver damage
• Taking prescription medications that go by different names but include the same ingredients, increasing the risk of overdose
• Mixing up eye drops with ear drops
• Chewing nonchewables
• Cutting up pills that should be taken whole
• Using the wrong spoon to measure dosage
• Missing or doubling up on doses

Why do medication errors happen? Mayo Clinic experts say some of most common reasons are poor communication between health care providers, poor communication between providers and their patients, many medications having sound-alike names or abbreviations, and many medications looking similar.

The following tips can help keep you and your family safe.

• Ask questions: find out when and how to take the medication and if there are potential side effects
• Review medication list with your health care provider
• Keep an up-to-date list of all your medications, including nonprescription and herbal products
• Store medications in their original labeled containers
• Keep medications organized by using a pillbox or pill dispenser
• Save information sheets that come with your medications
• Use the same pharmacy for all of your prescriptions
• Don't give your prescription medication to someone else and don't take someone else's

A process called medication reconciliation will also help prevent medication errors. Medication reconciliation is when you compare your current or updated list of medications, both prescription and over-the counter, to what you have been taking. This should be done every time a medication changes or you interact with a new health care provider.

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Taking a prescription drug can be confusing. And taking several medications ... some before breakfast and others just before bed ... can multiply the challenges. On this week's Mayo Clinic Radio, pharmacist Jeremy Anderson answers common questions about managing your prescriptions. Also on the program, gynecologic oncologist Dr. Jamie Bakkum-Gamez talks about a new screening test for endometrial cancer that uses tampons. And we'll discuss ringing in your ears, known as tinnitus (TIN-ih-tus), with Mayo Clinic audiologist Dr. Janalene Niichel.

Myth or Matter-of-Fact: If you miss a daily dose of medication, it's usually OK to take two doses the next day to make up for it.

Mayo Clinic Radio is available on iHeart Radio.

Click here to listen to the program on Saturday, April 18, at 9:05 a.m., and follow #MayoClinicRadio.

To find and listen to archived shows, click here.

Mayo Clinic Radio is a weekly one-hour radio program highlighting health and medical information from Mayo Clinic. The show is taped for rebroadcast by some affiliates.

The post MAYO CLINIC RADIO appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Miss the program?  Here's the podcast. Mayo Clinic Radio PODCAST 04-18-15

Myth or Matter-of-Fact: If you miss a daily dose of medication, it's usually OK to take two doses the next day to make up for it.

To listen to the program at 9:05 a.m. Saturday, April 18, click here.

Follow #MayoClinicRadio and tweet your questions.

Mayo Clinic Radio is available on iHeartRadio.

Mayo Clinic Radio is a weekly one-hour radio program highlighting health and medical information from Mayo Clinic.

To find and listen to archived shows, click here.

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Journalists: Sound bites with Dr. Hall-Flavin are available in the downloads.

Heroin is cheap, easily obtainable and on the rise as a killer across the nation. Because it is so cheap, heroin abuse is being seen in younger people and more people in the middle class. Experts say oxycontin use can easily lead to heroin addiction as it costs costs a fourth as much. Parents, friends and colleagues should be aware of the symptoms of heroin use, especially if they suspect or know that a person has used illegal drugs or prescription painkillers before:

• The person shows a reduced sense of pain.
• They appear to be sedated.
• They are frequently depressed or seem confused.
• If they are constipated.
• If their breathing appears slow.

MEDIA CONTACT:Bob Nellis, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu

“Heroin is prevalent, it’s out there and it is deadly,” says Dr. Daniel Hall-Flavin, M.D., Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic psychiatrist and addiction expert. “But it doesn’t have to be. There is hope out there for people if they can get treatment.” 

A heroin overdose most often occurs when the heart stops or from lack of breathing, says Dr. Hall-Flavin. That’s because opiates suppress the brain stem, the part of the brain that regulates breathing and your heartbeat.

A few facts about heroin and heroin abuse:

• Because of its addictive nature, the average heroin addict is using 4-6 times a day to sustain a high.
• The mortality rate among heroin users is up to 63 times higher than their non-using counterparts.
• Physicians and addiction experts are seeing more heroin abuse in the middle class and younger individuals.
• In recent years, there has been more death due to heroin. That trend has paralleled the increased use of opiate based prescription pain killers during the past 12-15 years.
• Someone abusing painkillers may transition to heroin. It’s cheaper and can be easier to get.

Dr. Hall-Flavin says one potential solution to the heroin overdose (besides treatment) could be widespread distribution of Naloxone at places such as public health clinics. The drug overturns the effects of heroin. Because 85 percent of people who overdose do so in front of someone else, it has the potential to save lives.

“It’s good to know the signs and symptoms of an overdose, and let someone know how to reach treatment,” says Dr. Hall-Flavin. “It is also good to dispose of all unused, expired or unneeded prescription drugs at home.”

To interview Dr. Hall-Flavin about addiction or heroin abuse, please contact Bob Nellis at 507-284-5005 or e-mail newsbureau@mayo.edu.

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About Mayo Clinic
Recognizing 150 years of serving humanity in 2014, Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. For more information, visit 150years.mayoclinic.org, www.mayoclinic.org and newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org.

The post Heroin Use and Fatalities Rising May Be Due to Cost, Other Opioid Use appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Heroin, a drug that can be smoked, sniffed/snorted or injected intravenously, is highly addictive. For comparison, about 9 percent of people who use marijuana will become addicted. Close to 17 percent of cocaine users will. It’s 15 percent for alcohol. But for heroin, 25 percent or more of users will become addicted. That means roughly one in four users become addicts.

Journalists: Video of Dr. Hall-Flavin talking about heroin addiction is available in the downloads.

“Heroin is prevalent, it’s out there and it is deadly,” says Dr. Daniel Hall-Flavin, M.D., Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic psychiatrist and addiction expert. “But it doesn’t have to be. There is hope out there for people if they can get treatment.”

A heroin overdose most often occurs when the heart stops or from lack of breathing, says Dr. Hall-Flavin. That’s because opiates suppress the brain stem, the part of the brain that regulates breathing and your heartbeat.

A few facts about heroin and heroin abuse:

• Because of its addictive nature, the average heroin addict is using 4-6 times a day to sustain a high.
• The mortality rate among heroin users is up to 63 times higher than their non-using counterparts.
• Physicians and addiction experts are seeing more heroin abuse in the middle class and younger individuals.
• In recent years, there has been more death due to heroin. That trend has paralleled the increased use of opiate based prescription pain killers during the past 12-15 years.
• Someone abusing painkillers may transition to heroin. It’s cheaper and can be easier to get.

Dr. Hall-Flavin says one potential solution to the heroin overdose (besides treatment) could be widespread distribution of Naloxone at places such as public health clinics. The drug overturns the effects of heroin. Because 85 percent of people who overdose do so in front of someone else, it has the potential to save lives.

“It’s good to know the signs and symptoms of an overdose, and let someone know how to reach treatment,” says Dr. Hall-Flavin. “It is also good to dispose of all unused, expired or unneeded prescription drugs at home.”

To interview Dr. Hall-Flavin about addiction or heroin abuse, please contact Nick Hanson at 507-284-5005 or e-mail newsbureau@mayo.edu.

###

About Mayo Clinic
Recognizing 150 years of serving humanity in 2014, Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. For more information, visit 150years.mayoclinic.org, www.mayoclinic.org and newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Nick Hanson, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu

The post Expert Alert: Increase in Opioid Prescriptions Parallels Spike in Heroin Use, Overdoses appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Mayo Clinic psychiatrist and addiction specialist Daniel Hall-Flavin, M.D., says heroin is highly addictive and creates a vicious downward spiral. He also says the increase of prescription opioids, the last 10-12 years, could be related to an increased use of heroin. Dr. Hall-Flavin adds, "It's prevalant, deadly but doesn't have to be."

Journalists: Sound bites with Dr. Hall-Flavin are available in the downloads.

The post Heroin: A Vicious Downward Spiral appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.