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20 Results (showing 1 - 10)
Results sorted by posted date (newest first)
Results sorted by posted date (newest first)
Posted 8/23/2022 (updated 3/27/2024)
In this cross-sectional, multistate study of rural communities, 79% of people using drugs reported past-30-day methamphetamine use; nonfatal overdose was greatest in people using both methamphetamine and opioids (22%) vs opioids alone (14%), or methamphetamine alone (6%). People using both substances reported the least access to treatment; only 17% of those using methamphetamine alone had naloxone.
Posted 3/16/2022 (updated 3/27/2024)
Background: Sharp exacerbations of the US overdose crisis are linked to polysubstance use of synthetic compounds. Xylazine is a veterinary tranquilizer, long noted in the street opioid supply of Puerto Rico, and more recently Philadelphia. Yet its national trends, geographic distribution, and health risks are poorly characterized. Methods: In this sequential mixed-methods study, xylazine was increasingly observed by ethnographers in Philadelphia among drug-sellers and people who inject drugs (PWID). Subsequently, we systematically searched for records describing xylazine-present overdose mortality across the US and assessed time trends and overlap with other drugs
Posted 3/3/2022 (updated 3/26/2024)
Drug overdose is a nationwide epidemic that claimed the lives of over 100,000 people in the United States in the past year. Opioids, either alone or in combination with other drugs or alcohol, were responsible for approximately 70 percent of these deaths. Many of those 70,000 people would be alive today if they had been administered the opioid antagonist naloxone and, where needed, other emergency care.
Posted 3/3/2022 (updated 3/26/2024)
The US overdose crisis is driven by fentanyl, heroin, and prescription opioids. One evidence-based policy response has been to broaden naloxone distribution, but how much naloxone a community would need to reduce the incidence of fatal overdose is unclear. We aimed to estimate state-level US naloxone need in 2017 across three main naloxone access points (community-based programs, provider prescription, and pharmacy-initiated distribution) and by dominant opioid epidemic type (fentanyl, heroin, and prescription opioid).
Posted 10/20/2021 (updated 4/3/2024)
Background As the opioid overdose crisis persists and take-home naloxone (THN) programmes expand, it is important that the intervention is targeted towards those most likely to use it. We examined THN program participants to 1) describe those that return for refills, specifically those that reported multiple use (supersavers) and 2) to determine what rescuer characteristics were associated with higher rates of THN use.
Methods This study included a cohort of consenting THN recipients from June 2014- June 2021 who completed initial and refill questionnaires from a widespread program in Norway. Adjusted logistic regression was used to explore associations with higher rates of THN use. ‘Super-savers’ reported three or more THN uses.
Posted 10/13/2021 (updated 4/3/2024)
Over the past twenty years a large number of new psychoactive substances (NPS) have entered and modified the recreational drug scene. Their intake has been associated with health-related risks, especially so for vulnerable populations such as people with severe mental illness, who might be at higher risk of suicidality or self-injurious behavior. This paper aims at providing an overview of NPS abuse and the effects on mental health and suicidality issues, by performing a literature review of the current related knowledge, thereby identifying those substances that, more than others, are linked to suicidal behaviors.
Posted 9/15/2021 (updated 4/2/2024)
Background: Opioid overdose has become the leading cause of death among adults between 25 and 54 years old in the U.S. The purpose of this study is to explore the social and relational factors that shape the current opioid overdose epidemic.
Posted 9/15/2021 (updated 4/2/2024)
Background: Rates of fatal overdose (OD) from synthetic opioids rose nearly 60 % from 2016 to 2018. 911 Good Samaritan Laws (GSLs) are an evidenced-based strategy for preventing OD fatality. This study describes patrol officers’ knowledge of their state’s GSL, experience with OD response, and their perspectives on strategies to prevent and respond to opioid OD.
Posted 8/19/2021 (updated 4/2/2024)
Have you ever felt too uncomfortable or weird (not in a nice way) after taking stims? You could have been “overamping.” Stimulants like crack/cocaine and meth can lead to side effects that are unwanted and uncomfortable or potentially dangerous. Knowing what it is and what to do can help you be prepared if it happens.
Overamping happens when the effects of a stimulant become overwhelming, distressing, and/or dangerous.Overamping is specific to “overdosing” on stims like crack, cocaine, or meth. Using the word “overamping” helps to differentiate from an opioid overdose since they are different in how it happens, how it appears, and how to respond.
Posted 7/7/2021 (updated 4/2/2024)
In 2015, 33,091 persons in the United States died from an opioid-related drug overdose.The epidemic of opioid overdose deaths has led to expanding the use of naloxone in community settings by non–medically trained bystanders who are often people who use drugs (PWUD). Since 2013, illicitly manufactured fentanyl (IMF), fentanyl analogs, and other synthetic opioids have played an increasing role in overdose deaths in the United States. Illicitly manufactured fentanyl (IMF) prevalence has increased. However, there is uncertainty about naloxone dose(s) used by nonmedical bystanders to reverse opioid overdoses in the context of increasing IMF.