I-Team: Teen Athletes More Likely To Abuse Painkillers

BOSTON (CBS) – Most parents encourage their children to play sports so they get the benefits of fresh air and learn how to be a member of a team. Despite those positive benefits, there is a drawback. It is estimated about two million teen athletes are seriously injured every year. Often, those patients are prescribed narcotic pain medication which can create a set of new issues. Ann Ahearn-Avitibile remembers watching her son James score touchdowns at a young age on the football field. “He was an athlete, a star athlete.” But with the accolades came injuries for the star of Middleboro High School. A fractured collarbone and a hamstring problem led to prescriptions for OxyContin. “We made him take his medication, thinking we were being good parents,” said Ahearn-Avitibile. “We underestimated the power that these drugs had, and to tell you the truth, no one was really talking about it.” James quickly became addicted to prescription pain pills and then heroin. He eventually died of an overdose in 2013. Ahearn-Avitibile has now lost two sons to the opioid epidemic. Her son Patrick died last summer. “I never in a million years would have thought this was my future, my present. Never.” “A sports injury is just one more pathway to addiction,” said Peter Monaghan, a rehab specialist at Clean Slate in Plymouth. He is seeing more cases of teen athletes struggling with addiction. WEB EXTRA: Steps to safeguard your teen against opioid addiction “They want ...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health i-Team Local News Dr. Mallika Marshall opioid crisis Ryan Kath Source Type: news