Cannabis Legalization and Adolescent Use of Electronic Vapor Products, Cannabis, and Cigarettes
Conclusions: Adolescents in cannabis-legal states were more likely to report vaping and cannabis use compared to adolescents in NL states. Public health officials, policymakers, and clinicians should consider the associations between cannabis legalization and adolescent vaping, cigarette, and cannabis use patterns. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Treatment Disruption and Childcare Responsibility as Risk Factors for Drug and Alcohol Use in Persons in Treatment for Substance Use Disorders During the COVID-19 Crisis
Objectives: The novel 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has caused considerable upheaval in the U.S. healthcare system. The current study examined patient-reported experiences in substance use disorder (SUD) treatment during the early stages of the COVID-19 crisis. Methods: Participants in SUD treatment were recruited via online crowdsourcing from April 14, 2020 to May 26, 2020, during the early stages of the COVID-19 crisis. Participants reported disruptions in SUD treatment, stress and anxiety caused by these disruptions on a 0-100 point visual analogue scale (VAS), stress associated with childcare responsibi...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Substance Use and Utilization of Prenatal and Postpartum Care
Conclusions: Substance use during pregnancy is independently associated with disparities in prenatal and postpartum care access. Future studies are needed to identify how barriers lead to care inequalities and importantly, to identify strategies to improve care utilization. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Assessing Stigma Towards Substance Use in Pregnancy: A Randomized Study Testing the Impact of Stigmatizing Language and Type of Opioid Use on Attitudes Toward Mothers With Opioid Use Disorder
Conclusions: We found no major differences in attitudes regardless of vignette received. Overall, respondents supported opportunities for maternal recovery yet blamed women, describing mothers as culpable for causing harm to their newborn, showcasing internally conflicting views. These views could contribute to ongoing stigma and avoidance of care among pregnant women with OUD. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Educational Studies Examining Knowledge of Substance Use Disorders and Career Aspirations Among Medical Trainees in an Inner-City Hospital
Objectives: Gaps in addiction medicine training are a reason for poor substance use care in North America. Hospital addiction medicine consult services (AMCS) provide critical medical services, including screening and treatment of substance use disorders. Although these programs often feature an educational component for medical learners, the impact of AMCS teaching on objective knowledge and career aspirations in addiction medicine has not been well described. Methods: The authors report findings from two sequential studies conducted at a large academic hospital in Vancouver, Canada. The first study assessed th...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Association Between Benzodiazepine and Opioid Prescription and Mortality Among Patients in a Large Healthcare System
Conclusions: Study findings highlight significant mortality associated with the coprescription of opioids and BDZ in a general healthcare setting. Further research is needed to elucidate factors associated with mortality among non-OUD patients who are co-prescribed opioids and BDZ. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Medication for Addiction Treatment and Postpartum Health Care Utilization Among Pregnant Persons With Opioid Use Disorder
Conclusions: Medicaid data from Vermont and Maine suggests that medication for addiction treatment for opioid use disorder during pregnancy reduces emergency health care utilization in the first year postpartum. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Polysubstance Overdose Deaths in the Fentanyl Era: A Latent Class Analysis
Objectives: To elucidate the main latent classes of substances detected among overdose decedents, and latent class associations with age, sex, race, and jurisdiction of death in Maryland. Methods: We used toxicology data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Maryland for all decedents. We analyzed all cases of drug overdose deaths that occurred from 2016 to 2018 (N = 6566) using latent class analysis and regression. Results: Drug overdose deaths were concentrated in 2 of 24 counties in Maryland (Baltimore City and County). Fentanyl was involved in 71% of all drug overdose deaths, and the ma...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Trust in Hospital Physicians Among Patients With Substance Use Disorder Referred to an Addiction Consult Service: A Mixed-methods Study
Conclusions: Most participants retained or increased to high trust levels after hospitalization with an addiction consult service. Addiction consult services can create environments where healthcare providers build trust with, and humanize care for, hospitalized patients with SUD, and can also mitigate power struggles that hospitalized patients with SUD frequently experience. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Extreme Binge Drinking During Adolescence: Associations With Subsequent Substance Use Disorders in American Indian and Mexican American Young Adults
Conclusions: Although binge drinking was more common in AI compared to MA, there were little effects of race in individual risk factor analyses. Monthly ABD and EABD were common among these AI/MA as adolescents, and, as with other ethnic groups, these drinking patterns resulted in highly significant increases in the odds of developing alcohol and other substance use disorders in young adulthood. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

International Classification of Diseases (ICD) Codes Fail to Accurately Identify Injection Drug Use Associated Endocarditis Cases
Objectives: Infective endocarditis (IE) secondary to injection drug use (IDU-IE) is a disease with high morbidity, cost, and rapid demographic evolution. Studies frequently utilize combinations of International Statistical Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes to identify IDU-IE cases in electronic medical records. This is a validation of this identification strategy in a US cohort. Methods: Records from January 1, 2004 to September 31, 2015 for those aged ≥18yo with any ICD-coded IE encounter (inpatient or outpatient) were retrieved from the electronic medical record and then manually reviewed and classified...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

What's in an “ASAM-based Assessment?” Variations in Assessment and Level of Care Determination in Systems Required to Use ASAM Patient Placement Criteria
Conclusions: The differences among the ASAM-based assessments examined in this paper suggest a need to implement fidelity standards, enhance training, and create resources to help systems create and utilize assessment and patient placement tools that are consistent across the SUD treatment field. (Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine)
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Initiation of Low-threshold Buprenorphine in Nontreatment Seeking Patients With Opioid Use Disorder Engaged in Hepatitis C Treatment
Objective: The ANCHOR program offered buprenorphine treatment to people who inject drugs engaged in hepatitis C (HCV) treatment at a Washington, DC harm reduction organization. This analysis describes the program model and outcomes of the opioid care continuum at 1 year. Methods: Primary outcomes were initiation of buprenorphine and retention in care, defined by an active buprenorphine prescription at given time points. Secondary outcomes included treatment interruptions, reasons for treatment noninitiation and termination, buprenorphine and opiate use, and HIV risk behaviors. Buprenorphine and opiate use were m...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Original Research Source Type: research

Where Do We Go From Here? The Delivery of Addiction Treatment in a Post-COVID World
Many healthcare institutions across the nation experienced significant disruptions in addiction treatment services as a result of COVID-19. As restrictions now begin to loosen, there is an opportunity to transition towards a new treatment structure informed by the experience from both the current public health crisis and precrisis operations. However, there is currently limited information on how best to do so, leaving many providers and specialty programs searching for answers. The permanent integration of recent regulatory changes into routine clinical practice, specifically regarding prescribing flexibility and use of t...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Commentaries Source Type: research

Pregnancy and the Opioid Crisis: Heightened Effects of COVID-19
The opioid epidemic continues to affect pregnant women with opioid use disorder adversely in unique and enduring ways. The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the necessary public health measures implemented to slow the transmission have increased barriers to care for these same women. This commentary explores the implications of these measures and discusses strategies we have developed to manage these challenges based on our work in a clinical trial providing patient navigation to pregnant mothers with OUD. We believe these solutions can be applied in medical, behavioral health, and research sett...
Source: Journal of Addiction Medicine - January 1, 2022 Category: Addiction Tags: Commentaries Source Type: research