Drug and alcohol dependence
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Drug Alcohol Depend · May 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialSubstance use and drinking outcomes in Personalized Cognitive Counseling randomized trial for episodic substance-using men who have sex with men.
Non-dependent alcohol and substance use patterns are prevalent among men who have sex with men (MSM), yet few effective interventions to reduce their substance use are available for these men. We evaluated whether an adapted brief counseling intervention aimed at reducing HIV risk behavior was associated with secondary benefits of reducing substance use among episodic substance-using MSM (SUMSM). ⋯ The addition of adapted PCC to rapid HIV testing may have benefits in increasing abstinence from certain classes of substances previously associated with HIV risk, including alcohol and EDD; and reducing alcohol intoxication frequency and high-risk sexual behaviors concurrent with methamphetamine use.
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Drug Alcohol Depend · May 2014
Clinical TrialExtended release naltrexone injection is performed in the majority of opioid dependent patients receiving outpatient induction: a very low dose naltrexone and buprenorphine open label trial.
The approval of extended release injectable naltrexone (XR-NTX; Vivitrol(®)) has introduced a new option for treating opioid addiction, but studies are needed to identify its place within the spectrum of available therapies. The absence of physiological opioid dependence is a necessary and challenging first step for starting XR-NTX. Outpatient detoxification gives poor results and inpatient detoxification is either unavailable or too brief for the physiological effects of opioids to resolve. Here we present findings from an open label study that tested whether the transition from opioid addiction to XR-NTX can be safely and effectively performed in an outpatient setting using very low dose naltrexone and buprenorphine. ⋯ Outpatient transition to XR-NTX combining upward titration of very low dose naltrexone with downward titration of low dose buprenorphine was safe, well tolerated, and completed by most participants. Further studies with larger numbers of subjects are needed to see if this approach is useful for naltrexone induction.
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The prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) use among emergency department (ED) patients is high and many of these patients have unrecognized and unmet substance use treatment needs. Identification of patients in the ED with problem substance use is not routine at this time. ⋯ Better understanding of the demographic correlates of ATOD use and severity and the patterns of comorbidity among classes of substance can inform the design of optimal screening and brief intervention procedures addressing ATOD use among ED patients. Tobacco may be an especially useful predictor.
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Drug Alcohol Depend · May 2014
The iatrogenic epidemic of prescription drug abuse: county-level determinants of opioid availability and abuse.
Opioid use and abuse in the United States continues to expand at an alarming rate. In this study, we examine the county-level determinants of the availability and abuse of prescription opioids to better understand the socio-ecological context, and in particular the role of the healthcare delivery system, on the prescription drug abuse epidemic. ⋯ The results suggest that the structure of the local healthcare system is a major determinant of community-level access to opioids adding to a growing body of evidence that the problem of prescription opioid abuse is, at least in part, an "iatrogenic epidemic."
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Drug Alcohol Depend · May 2014
Factors predicting development of opioid use disorders among individuals who receive an initial opioid prescription: mathematical modeling using a database of commercially-insured individuals.
Prescription drug abuse in the United States and elsewhere in the world is increasing at an alarming rate with non-medical opioid use, in particular, increasing to epidemic proportions over the past two decades. It is imperative to identify individuals most likely to develop opioid abuse or dependence to inform large-scale, targeted prevention efforts. ⋯ Understanding correlates of OUD development can help to predict risk and inform prevention efforts.