Health News Roundup: Teen pot users may hallucinate, become paranoid; More U.S. adults may be trying to lose weight, after all

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

FDA panel backs prescribing opioid overdose reversal drug along with painkillers

An advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday recommended prescribing the opioid overdose reversal drug, naloxone, along with addictive painkillers. The panel, which concluded a two-day discussion on ways to make the potentially life-saving drug readily available, voted 12-11 in favor of labeling changes for opioids that recommend co-prescribing the overdose antidote.

Guideline group turns gaze to opioid epidemic

As the opioid epidemic deepens, a government-backed panel that routinely draws up guidelines for disease prevention is starting to search for ways to prevent addiction to these drugs in the first place. The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has drafted a plan for research to identify evidence-based strategies that could lower the likelihood of addiction developing out of opioid prescriptions.

Teen pot users may hallucinate, become paranoid

More than two in five teens who use marijuana experience psychotic symptoms like hallucinations, paranoia and anxiety, a U.S. study suggests. Marijuana use during adolescence has long been linked to an increased risk of developing psychotic disorders like schizophrenia as well as other mental health problems, researchers note in JAMA Pediatrics. While previous research has found otherwise healthy adult marijuana users can experience psychotic symptoms, less is known about the potential for this to occur among teens.

WHO confirms case of yellow fever in Netherlands, says risk low

A case of yellow fever, an acute and contagious mosquito-borne viral disease, has been reported in a man in the Netherlands who recently traveled to Gambia and Senegal, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday. The risk of further spread of the disease in the Netherlands is very low, the WHO said, in part because the virus is carried by types of mosquito rarely seen in northern Europe.

Pharma industry returns on R&D investment hit nine-year low

The cost of developing a new drug has nearly doubled since 2010 and the world's 12 biggest drugmakers are making the lowest return on their R&D investments in nine years, according to Deloitte. An annual survey of the economics of pharma research and development (R&D) by the consultancy found that despite a steady flow of new medicines reaching global markets, the 12 drugmakers' average return on their R&D fell to 1.9 percent this year, from 3.7 percent a year ago.

Indivior plans cheaper opioid addiction drug if rivals launch copycats

Indivior Plc said on Tuesday it could launch a cheaper version of its blockbuster opioid addiction treatment, Suboxone, if rivals release generic versions of the drug. The British drugmaker is also looking to reduce its dependence on Suboxone, which accounts for about 80 percent of its revenue, by focusing on another opioid addiction drug Sublocade and schizophrenia treatment Perseris.

More U.S. adults may be trying to lose weight, after all

Researchers said last year that the proportion of overweight U.S. adults trying to lose weight has been shrinking - but newly reanalyzed data suggest the proportion of adults trying to slim down actually grew slightly. Based on a U.S. survey, researchers had originally reported in JAMA that the proportion of adults who are overweight and obese surged from 53% to 66% over roughly the past three decades. They also said that over the same period, the proportion of overweight and obese adults trying to lose weight dropped from 56% to 49%.

Few elderly patients record treatment preferences before surgery

Only one in four U.S. seniors with chronic health problems prepare documents detailing their treatment preferences ahead of undergoing risky surgery, a study suggests. The 393 patients in the study, all 65 or older, had multiple illnesses and underwent high-risk surgery, either planned or as an emergency. Only about a quarter had advance care planning documents stating their preferences for treatment options, such as whether they would like to receive life support and instructions on who should make medical decisions on their behalf, in the event they become unable to decide for themselves.

U.S. Surgeon General wants tougher action to tackle teen vaping epidemic

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams on Tuesday issued a rare advisory https://e-cigarettes.surgeongeneral.gov/documents/surgeon-generals-advisory-on-e-cigarette-use-among-youth-2018.pdf, calling for aggressive steps against e-cigarette use among teens, which he said has become an "epidemic". The detailed advisory listed various strategies that states, communities, health professionals and parents can apply to restrict the use of e-cigarettes.

New Hampshire physician assistant guilty of Insys opioid kickback scheme

A former physician assistant in New Hampshire was convicted on Tuesday of charges that he accepted nearly $50,000 in kickbacks from Insys Therapeutics Inc in exchange for prescribing its addictive fentanyl spray. A federal jury in Concord, New Hampshire, found Christopher Clough, 45, guilty of all charges he faced in a case that stemmed from a years-long investigation into the Arizona company's efforts to promote its opioid medication Subsys.

(With inputs from Reuters)

(With inputs from agencies.)