In 2023, the opioid crisis claimed over 81,000 lives -- a staggering number, yet many of these deaths could have been prevented. While prescription opioids can be essential for managing pain, they come with significant risks that are often overlooked. In this episode, we dive deep into the hidden dangers of opioid prescriptions and explore the crucial questions you should ask before accepting these medications. Ellen Eaton, MD, a leading expert in opioid treatment from the University of Alabama Birmingham, joins us to discuss the real risks of misuse, the warning signs to watch for, and the steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved ones. From understanding the potential side effects, to navigating the road to recovery, this conversation sheds light on the opioid epidemic and the urgent need for prevention and education. UAB Medicine Addiction Recovery Services Transcript Neha Pathak, MD, FACP, DipABLM: Welcome to the WebMD Health Discovered Podcast. I'm Dr Neha Pathak, WebMD's, Chief Physician Editor for Health and Lifestyle Medicine. Many of us have talked to our children and loved ones about how to respond if they're offered an opioid or some other unknown substance, even if it's candy at a party, fearing the dangers of opioids and overdose. But how many of us think about the risks in these situations? Our child is injured playing sports and we're given a 14-day prescription for an opioid containing medication. We're at the dentist's office and we're given a prescription for an opioid for a short course after a procedure. New data shows that there were over 81,000 opioid deaths in 2023. So, what can we do to keep our loved ones safe? Today we'll talk about the best strategies to prevent opioid misuse and abuse in the first place. Even if it starts with a prescription from our doctor's office. The journey to addiction and to recovery and what we need to know about preventing opioid deaths.   But first, let me introduce my guest, Dr Ellen Eaton. Dr Eaton is an associate professor at the Department of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She's the director of the office based opioid treatment clinic at the UAB 1917 clinic, and a member of the leadership team of the UAB Center for Addiction and Pain Prevention and Intervention. Welcome to the WebMD Health Discovered podcast, Dr Eaton. Ellen Eaton, MD: Thank you so much for having me. Pathak: I'd love to just start by asking you about your own personal health discovery. So, what was your aha moment that led you to the work that you're doing with opioid treatment, management, and addiction and pain prevention interventions? Eaton: Yeah, I have an interesting story as an infectious diseases physician who is primarily working on substance use treatment and prevention. I had the honor of being a fellow with the National Academy of Medicine, really a health policy fellowship. And as an infectious disease physician, I was invited to a working group around infectious consequences of the opioid epidemic. And that was in 2017. It was a tremendous opportunity to go to D.C. and work with thought leaders in the field, other physician scientists, infectious diseases doctors, and those experiences and treatment models that I was hearing about in D.C. were not happening in my home institution at UAB. There were addiction medicine physicians, but we hadn't integrated care. We were not doing syndemic care where you're treating the infection, preventing Hep C, and you're treating their substance use disorder. So that opportunity in 2017 inspired me to come home to UAB, create a clinic here that is for our patients living with HIV who have opioid use disorder, and from there, we've really expanded services broadly for substance use and infectious diseases. So really grateful for the National Academy and that opportunity. That really was a launch pad for my career. Pathak: I would love to talk about what you've seen as the entry point for a lot of peop