• Louisa Degenhardt, Raimondo Bruno, Robert Ali, Nicholas Lintzeris, Michael Farrell, and Briony Larance.
• National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW, Australia. Electronic address: l.degenhardt@unsw.edu.au.
• Drug Alcohol Depend. 2015 Jun 1; 151: 56-67.

BackgroundThere is increasing concern about tampering of pharmaceutical opioids. We describe early findings from an Australian study examining the potential impact of the April 2014 introduction of an abuse-deterrent sustained-release oxycodone formulation (Reformulated OxyContin(®)).MethodsData on pharmaceutical opioid sales; drug use by people who inject drugs regularly (PWID); client visits to the Sydney Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC); and last drug injected by clients of inner-Sydney needle-syringe programmes (NSPs) were obtained, 2009-2014. A cohort of n=606 people tampering with pharmaceutical opioids was formed pre-April 2014, and followed up May-August 2014.ResultsThere were declines in pharmacy sales of 80mg OxyContin(®) post-introduction of the reformulated product, the dose most commonly diverted and injected by PWID. Reformulated OxyContin(®) was among the least commonly used and injected drugs among PWID. This was supported by Sydney NSP data. There was a dramatic reduction in MSIC visits for injection of OxyContin(®) post-introduction of the new formulation (from 62% of monthly visits pre-introduction to 5% of visits, August 2014). The NOMAD cohort confirmed a reduction in OxyContin(®) use/injection post-introduction. Reformulated OxyContin(®) was cheaper and less attractive for tampering than Original OxyContin(®).ConclusionsThese data suggest that, in the short term, introduction of an abuse-deterrent formulation of OxyContin(®) in Australia was associated with a reduction in injection of OxyContin(®), with no clear switch to other drugs. Reformulated OxyContin(®), in this short follow-up, does not appear to be considered as attractive for tampering.Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

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