In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing the potential role of GLP-1 therapies in alcohol and substance use disorders, risk factors associated with long-term opioid prescribing, patient motivation and readiness to taper opioids for chronic pain, national trends in ADHD medication prescribing, and more!

• GLP-1 Therapeutics and Their Emerging Role in Alcohol and Substance Use Disorders: An Endocrinology Primer Published in the Journal of Endocrine Society, October 2025
• A national cohort study of long-term opioid prescription and sociodemographic and health care-related risk factors Published in Communications Medicine, September 2025
• Patient Motivation to Reduce or Discontinue Opioids for Chronic Pain: Self-efficacy, Barriers, and Readiness to Change Published in the Clinical Journal of Pain, January 2024
• Population-Level Trends in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Medication Prescribing Published in JAMA Network Open, December 2025
• Increased Avoidance Learning in Chronic Opioid Users Published in JAMA Pyschiatry, November 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing the relationship between medical cannabis and opioid receipt in chronic pain, clinical challenges in managing risks of continuing versus tapering long-term opioid therapy, the impact of cannabis use on nicotine vaping cessation outcomes, and more!

• Medical Cannabis and Opioid Receipt Among Adults With Chronic Pain Published in JAMA Internal Medicine, December 2025
• Experiences of long-term benzodiazepine use and addiction amid changes in guidelines for the prescription of narcotic drugs: a qualitative study Published in Springer Nature Link, August 2025
• Management of patients at risk of harms from both continuing and discontinuing their long-term opioid therapy: A qualitative study to inform the gap in clinical practice guidelines Published in Pain Practice, January 2025
• Digital Cognitive Behavioral Treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder A Randomized Clinical Trial Published in JAMA Network Open, December 2025
• Cannabis Use and Nicotine Vaping Cessation Outcomes: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial Published in JAMA Network Open, December 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing healthcare enrollees and access outcomes, early high-risk opioid prescribing and persistent use among injured workers, the need for oversight of substance use reduction apps, barriers to universal MOUD availability in U.S. jails, and more!

• Trends in Methadone Use for Pain and Opioid Use Disorder Among Medicaid Enrollees Published in JAMA Health Forum, November 2025
• Early High-Risk Opioid Prescribing and Persistent Opioid Use in Australian Workers with Workers' Compensation Claims for Back and Neck Musculoskeletal Disorders or Injuries: A Retrospective Cohort Study Published in Springer Nature Link, March 2025
• The Need for Oversight Over Apps for Substance Use Reduction Published in JAMA, October 2025
• Barriers to Universal Availability of Medications for Opioid Use Disorder in US Jails Published in JAMA Network Open, April 2025
• Transient and Long-Term Risks of Common Physical Activities in People With Low Back Pain Published in JAMA Network Open, December 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing opportunities to reduce medication overuse in urgent care settings, emerging advances in clinical pain management, the role of placebo responses in analgesic trials, evidence for virtual reality as a treatment for chronic low back pain, and more!

• Antibiotic, Glucocorticoid, and Opioid Prescribing in Urgent Cares: An Opportunity for Reducing Medication Overuse Published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, July 2025
• Clinical pain management: Current practice and recent innovations in research Published in Cell Reports Medicine, October 2024
• Placebo Responses in Clinical Trials of Analgesics, published in Neurological Clinics Published Neurological Clinics, September 2025
• Therapeutic effects of virtual reality technology on chronic low back pain Published in Medicine (Baltimore), November 2025
• Smartphone-Based Muscle Relaxation for Migraine in the Emergency Department A Randomized Clinical Trial Published in JAMA Network Open, October 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing trial data on cannabidiol for fibromyalgia, the role of non-opioid psychiatric medications in chronic pain, the complex relationship between low back pain and depression, evidence for intra-articular injections in shoulder arthritis, and more!

• Cannabidiol versus placebo in patients with fibromyalgia: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, single-centre trial Published in Annals of Rheumatic Disease, August 2025
• Non-opioid psychiatric medications for chronic pain: systematic review and meta-analysis Published in Frontiers, October 2024
• The Potential Relationship Between Low Back Pain and Depression: A Comprehensive Review Published in Brain Behavior, November 2025
• Intra-articular injections for shoulder arthritis in adults: a systematic review Published in European Journal of Medical Research, November 2025
• Recommendations for Addressing In-Hospital Substance Use From a National Delphi Consensus Process Published in JAMA Network Open, August 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing updated analyses of tramadol's effectiveness for chronic pain, advances in non-pharmacological pain interventions, comparative effects of preoperative hypnosis versus mindfulness on postoperative symptoms, and more!

• Tramadol versus placebo for chronic pain: a systematic review with meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis Published in BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine, October 2025
• An update on non-pharmacological interventions for pain relief Published in Cell Reports Medicine, February 2025
• Stress, pain intensity, and work productivity in individuals with chronic pain: a cross-sectional observational study Published in BMC Public Health, November 2025
• Preoperative Hypnosis versus Mindfulness for Reducing Postoperative Symptoms in Breast Surgery: A Randomized Clinical Trial Published in Anesthesiology, November 2025
• Medicaid Coverage Policy Variations for Chronic Pain and Opioid Use Disorder Treatment Published in JAMA Network Open, August 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing the HRQ Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Playbook, outcomes of hospital addiction consultation services, comparative effectiveness of interventional procedures for chronic spine pain, postoperative cold therapy to reduce pain and opioid use, and more!

• Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Playbook Published by HRQ, October 2025
• Hospital Addiction Consultation Service and Opioid Use Disorder Treatment The START Randomized Clinical Trial Published in JAMA Internal Medicine, April 2025
• Common interventional procedures for chronic non-cancer spine pain: a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised trials Published in BMJ, February 2025
• The use of cold therapy unit in the postoperative period influences pain and narcotic use following arthroscopic rotator cuff repair Published in the Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery, October 2025
• Evaluation of a Novel Patient-Centered Methadone Restart Protocol Published in JAMA Network Open, August 2025

In this episode Dr. Stader and Dr. Bradley summarize and offer key insights for the following Coaches Top 5 picks discussing approaches that increase MOUD delivery in primary care, comparative effectiveness of extended-release naltrexone versus buprenorphine-naloxone, best-supported interventions for chronic low back pain, the role of patient resilience in perioperative outcomes, and more!

• Increasing Opioid Use Disorder Medication Treatment in Primary Care—What Works? Published in JAMA Internal Medicine, July 2025
• Effectiveness of Injectable Extended-Release Naltrexone vs Daily Buprenorphine-Naloxone for Opioid Dependence: A Randomized Clinical Noninferiority Trial Published in JAMA Psychiatry, December 2017
• Pain Management Interventions for the Treatment of Chronic Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Published the Clinical Journal of Pain, July 2023
• The effect of patient resilience on perioperative outcomes: a scoping review Published in British Journal of Anesthesia, October 2025
• Opioid Exposure Measurement in Postacute Care Under Medicare Consolidated Payments Published in JAMA Health Forum, September 2025