Antidepressants/Pain Relievers Cause “unprecedented number of emergency room visits & deaths”
Approximately 700,000 visits to the emergency room were linked to drug-related poisoning in 2007, according to a new study published February 28 on the Nationwide Children’s Hospital website. Researchers found that 44 percent of poisonings were caused by prescription medications such antidepressants and opioid pain relievers.
The study found that, on average, 1,900 people per day were sent to the emergency room due to drug overdoses. According to researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of the Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the cost associated with these visits totals approximately $1.4 billion per year.