Medications for Addiction Treatment Initiated from the Emergency Department: Ethical Considerations

Morbidity and mortality from opioid use disorder (OUD) remain at epidemic levels in the United States. In the 12-month period ending July 2018, approximately 46,000 people died from opioid overdose in the United States, approximately five deaths every hour.[1] The harms of OUD extend beyond the well-publicized overdose deaths. Aside from the tragic toll on families, patients experience social and medical sequelae of drug use. Among the medical sequelae is drug use-associated infective endocarditis, whose incidence has risen dramatically where opioid use disorder (OUD) is endemic; at least one state experienced a tenfold increase from 2007 to 2017.

Source: The American Journal of Emergency Medicine - November 15, 2019 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Kenneth D. Marshall, Arthur R. Derse, Kenneth V. Iserson, Nicholas Kluesner, Laura Vearrier Source Type: research