A new survey of 15,000 patients at drug-treatment centers in 49 statesshows that drug abusers are not completely abandoning prescription opioids for heroin. Instead, many use the two concurrently based on their availability.

The findings also reveal regional variations in the use of heroin and prescription painkillers.

"On the East and West coasts, combined heroin and prescription drug use has surpassed the exclusive use of prescription opioids," said senior investigator Theodore J. Cicero, PhD of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, . "This trend is less apparent in the Midwest, and in the Deep South, we saw a persistent use of prescription drugs -- but not much heroin."

New data presented at the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meetings in Dallas, Texas, implicates early humans in the extinction of large mammals, birds and lizards in Australia.

The "Anthropocene" has been with us for thousands of years, it seems - and the ancestors of Australian Aborigines have been implicated in the demise of a plethora of large-bodied animals, including a huge monitor lizard, large terrestrial birds, a giant wombat, the marsupial lion, and giant kangaroos.

One of the great hypocrisies in climate negotiations a decade ago was exempting China from any agreement by giving them "developing nation" status. The rationale was that their emissions were not that high, according to Europe, who had remained fans of nuclear energy and therefore used less fossil fuels.

But scientists knew that policy-makers and activists were using self-reported claims about the emissions. Soon, better measurement techniques began to show giant streams of CO2 coming out of the communist nation and the problem could no longer be denied. When they hosted the Olympics in Beijing, they banned cars for all but wealthy elites and visiting tourists, which made a difference, but isn't really a solution for countries with freedom.

It's no secret that cigarettes and heavy drinking are linked, people who engage in risky behaviors tend to do so in multiple ways, but a link to e-cigarettes, which have no tobacco, is new. A paper in Addictive Behaviors also found that more women than men use e-cigarettes socially, like when drinking, opposite to patterns seen in regular cigarette smoking.

A new systematic review and meta-analysis finds the overall rate of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries among high school athletes is significantly higher among females than males - and soccer is the most injury-causing for women.  

The acromio-clavicular joint is located at the top of the shoulder, between the collarbone and top of the shoulder blade. The AC joint is most commonly injured during sports, but can also be caused by motor vehicle accidents or falls. This dislocation is one of the most common shoulder injuries orthopedic surgeons treat.

For minor AC joint dislocations, surgeons often suggest patients wear a sling for a few weeks and undergo physiotherapy rather than undergo surgery using a plate and screws. Severe dislocations are often treated with surgery but new research finds that patients who opt for non-surgical treatment typically experience fewer complications and return to work sooner.