Resources
22 Results (showing 11 - 20)
Results sorted by posted date (oldest first)
Results sorted by posted date (oldest first)
Posted 1/20/2021 (updated 4/4/2024)
People who use drugs (PWUD) in the U.S. experience disproportionate adverse health outcomes and mortality as compared with the population as a whole (Lake & Kennedy, 2016; Reisinger, Pratt, Shoenborn, & Druss, 2017). Similar health outcomes have been reported elsewhere, for example in the UK (Neale, 2004), and across 8 other European countries (Bargagli et al., 2006). In the U.S. health outcomes among PWUD are intensified by the overdose pandemic, epidemic rates of HIV, hepatitis A and C, skin and soft tissue infections (CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020; Hagen, Thiede, & Des Jarlais, 2005; Scholl, Seth, Kariisa, Wilson, & Baldwin, 2019), and by structural barriers thwarting health access and utilization.
Posted 1/27/2021 (updated 4/4/2024)
The current study examined the accuracy of sensory discernment strategies by measuring study participants’ descriptions of the last opioid injected and checked with a fentanyl test strip (FTS) by that test's positive/negative result. The primary objective was to determine associations between FTS results and descriptions of the illi it opioid's physical appearance and physiological effects.
Posted 3/10/2021 (updated 4/5/2024)
The 2020 National Drug Threat Assessment (NDTA) is a comprehensive assessment of the threat posed to the United States by the trafficking and abuse of illicit drugs, the diversion and abuse of licit drugs, and the laundering of proceeds generated through illicit drug sales. It also addresses the role domestic groups, including organized violent gangs, serve in domestic drug trafficking. The most widely trafficked drugs are discussed in terms of their availability, consumption and overdose related deaths, production and cultivation, transportation, and distribution.
Posted 3/10/2021 (updated 4/5/2024)
There are safe ways to dispose of syringes you find on the ground. Sharing injection drug equipment can transmit infections, but there is little risk to someone who is accidentally poked or scratched by a discarded syringe.
Below you'll find information on how to pick them up, where to drop them off, and ways to get involved in cleaning up your neighborhood.
Engagement in drug treatment following nonfatal overdose among people who inject drugs in Appalachia
Posted 6/2/2021 (updated 4/10/2024)
Immediately after experiencing a non-fatal overdose, many people who inject drugs (PWID) engage in harm-minimizing behavior change, including engagement in drug treatment. To inform the implementation of tailored interventions designed to facilitate drug treatment engagement in rural communities, we sought to identify correlates of starting any form of drug treatment after their most recent overdose among PWID who reside in a rural county in West Virginia.
Posted 7/7/2021 (updated 4/2/2024)
Background: Injecting drug users (IDUs) are at increased risk of acquiring and transmitting HIV and other bloodborne pathogens through the multi-person use of syringes. Although research has shown that increased access to syringes through syringe exchange programs (SEPs) is an effective strategy to reduce risky injection practices many areas of the United States still do not have SEPs. In the absence of SEPs, legislation allowing pharmacies over-the-counter sales of syringes has also been shown to reduce syringe sharing. The success of pharmacy sales however is limited by other legal stipulations, such as drug paraphernalia laws, which in turn may contribute to fear among IDUs about being caught purchasing and carrying syringes.
Expanding The Circle of Care: A Practical Guide to Syringe Services for Tribal and Rural Communities
Posted 8/3/2021 (updated 4/2/2024)
This guide presents practical information on establishing and maintaining syringe services in rural and tribal communities based on experiences of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
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 3/21/2022 (updated 3/27/2024)
People who inject drugs (PWID) are likely to experience wounds and infection related to their injection drug use. Common wounds and infections experienced by PWID include blood poisoning (septicemia), infection of the heart lining (endocarditis), tetanus, hepatitis, bruising, collapsed veins, abscesses and blood clots. Preventing and caring for wounds in PWID requires special consideration of the conditions surrounding drug use.
Posted 3/21/2022 (updated 3/27/2024)
Syringe services programs (SSPs) remain highly effective, cost-saving interventions for the prevention of blood-borne infections among people who inject drugs. However, there have been restrictions regarding financial resources allocated to these programs, particularly in the US South. This study aimed to provide cost data regarding the implementation and first-year operations of an academic-based SSP utilizing fixed and mobile strategies, including the integration of onsite wound care.