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 are a class of drugs that include pain relievers available legally by prescription, the illegal drug , and synthetic opioids such as . These drugs activate  on nerve cells in the body and brain. Opioid pain relievers can be effective in treatment for relieving pain. However, regular use can lead to dependence, and misuse of opioid pain relievers can lead to addiction,  and possibly, death.

The Opioid Crisis

Paralleling a rapid increase in rates of opioid pain reliever prescribing, which is now showing early signs of abating, widespread use and misuse of these medications led to an alarming rise in , giving way to a .  showed that an estimated 1.2 million people in the United States aged 12 and older had an opioid use disorder, the most recent year for which data are available. 

ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø and the Opioid Crisis

ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø conducts and supports extensive research on pain management, and drug use and misuse. While the  leads ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø research efforts on drug use and addiction, and the  leads ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø research efforts on pain, many of ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø’s Institutes and Centers are involved in these research areas.

In April 2018, ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø announced the , a trans-agency effort to speed scientific solutions to stem the national opioid public health crisis. The initiative will bolster research to accelerate the development of innovative medications to treat opioid addiction, explore non-addictive interventions for chronic pain, and improve overdose prevention and treatment strategies, including research into additional overdose reversal medications and breathing stimulation devices. This initiative will engage both academic researchers and the private sector to increase efficient clinical translation of research.

Opioids and Chronic Pain

 is a major public health problem that affects an estimated 100 million American adults, approximately one third of the U.S. population. It is the primary reason Americans are on disability and unable to work, and is a top reason cited for seeking medical care. Although opioids may not always be the best course of treatment for chronic pain, .

ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø Funding

ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø Institutes and Centers support â€”from pain management to addiction prevention and treatment—to address the opioid crisis.  tracks official ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø funding for opioid and pain-related research in three relevant categories: Opioids, Opioid Misuse and Addiction, and Pain Research. ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø received an additional $500 million from Congress for use in fiscal years 2018 and 2019 aimed at addressing both opioid addiction and pain, which are included in the above categories.

As the primary funder for drug addiction research, the NIDA supports research pertaining to opioid use disorders that includes basic research on addiction, community prevention frameworks, testing of sustainable treatment models, and . As part of the HEAL Initiative, NIDA is focused on expanding therapeutic options for opioid addiction, overdose prevention and reversal and enhancing treatments for infants born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS)/neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS). NIDA is also working to develop new prevention and treatment strategies for addiction, and to improve and optimize existing effective prevention and treatment strategies for opioid addiction.

Given the need to improve pain treatments and reduce reliance on opioids, ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø funds a wide range of basic, translational, and clinical studies on pain. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) leads trans-ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø efforts to encourage and coordinate programs and activities on pain research. From examining â€™s role in pain, to using  approaches to treat pain, ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø encourages inter- and multi- disciplinary approaches to better address the challenges of treating pain. As part of the ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø HEAL Initiative, NINDS leads efforts to understand the biological underpinnings of chronic pain and establish the best pain management strategies for acute and chronic pain conditions. NINDS also works to accelerate the discovery and pre-clinical development of non-addictive pain treatments, and advance these treatments through the clinical pipeline.

ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø Pain Consortium

An integral part of ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø’s larger pain research agenda is the , activities and programs which currently are coordinated by the Office of Pain Policy, within the Office of the Director at NINDS. Established to enhance research and collaboration on pain activities across ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø’s 27 Institutes and Centers, the Consortium is responsible for coordinating pain research at the ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø,  in pain research, increasing  among the ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø and the larger scientific community, and curriculum resources .

In addition to the Consortium, ÈýÒÚÌåÓý¹ÙÍø serves as the lead of the Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee, a congressionally-mandated committee comprised of federal agency and department representatives, pain researchers and patient advocates. The committee oversaw the development of the , the federal government’s first coordinated plan for reducing the burden of chronic pain for the millions of affected Americans, and , a component of the National Pain Strategy that identifies and prioritizes research recommendations as a basis for a long-term strategic plan to coordinate and advance the federal pain research agenda.