Outcomes for patients receiving telemedicine-delivered medication-based treatment for Opioid Use Disorder: A retrospective chart review.

This report builds on a previous study that describes the collaboration between an urban academic medical center and a rural drug treatment center, the goal of which is to provide medication-based treatment to individuals with OUD via videoconferencing. We describe results of a retrospective chart review of 472 patients treated in the program between August 2015 and April 2019. We examined several demographic and substance use variables for individuals who consented to telemedicine treatment, retention in treatment over time, and opioid use over time to understand further the impact of prescribing buprenorphine and naltrexone via telemedicine to patients in a rural OUD treatment setting. Our findings support the effectiveness of prescribing medications via telemedicine. The inclusion of more than three times as many patients as in our prior report revealed retention rates and toxicology results that are comparable to face-to-face treatment. These findings have implications for policymakers and clinicians considering implementation of similar programs.

Are injured workers with higher rehabilitation service utilization less likely to be persistent opioid users? A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Given its role in treating musculoskeletal conditions, rehabilitation medicine may be an important factor in decreasing the use of opioids among injured workers. The primary objective was to determine if increased utilization of rehabilitation services was associated with decreased persistent opioid use among workers' compensation claimants. The secondary objective was to determine the combined association of rehabilitation service utilization and persistent opioid use with days of work lost due to injury. METHODS: Using Chesapeake Employers' Insurance Company claims data from 2008 to 2016, claimants with at least one filled opioid prescription within 90 days of injury were eligible for inclusion. The primary outcome was persistent opioid use, defined as at least one filled opioid prescription more than 90 days from injury. The secondary outcome was days lost due to injury. The primary variable of interest, rehabilitation service utilization, was quantified based on the number of rehabilitation service claims and grouped into five levels (no utilization, and four quartiles - low, medium, high, very high). RESULTS: Of the 9596 claimants included, 29% were persistent opioid users. Compared to claimants that did not utilize rehabilitation services, patients with very high rehabilitation utilization were nearly three times more likely (OR: 2.71, 95% CI: 2.28-3.23, p < 0.001) to be persistent opioid users and claimants with low and medium levels of rehabilitation utilization were less likely to be persistent opioid users (low OR: 0.20, 95%: 0.14-0.27, p < 0.001) (medium OR: 0.26, 95% CI: 0.21-0.32, p < 0.001). Compared to claimants that did not utilize rehabilitation services, very high rehabilitation utilization was associated with a 27% increase in days lost due to the injury (95% CI: 21.9-32.3, p < 0.001), while low (- 16.4, 95% CI: -21.3 - -11.5, p < 0.001) and medium (- 11.5, 95% CI: -21.6 - -13.8, p < 0.001) levels of rehabilitation utilization were associated with a decrease in days lost due to injury, adjusting for persistent opioid use. CONCLUSION: Our analysis of insurance claims data revealed that low to moderate levels of rehabilitation was associated with reduced persistent opioid use and days lost to injury. Very high rehabilitation utilization was associated with increased persistent opioid use and increased time from work.

Buprenorphine Induction in a Rural Maryland Detention Center During COVID-19: Implementation and Preliminary Outcomes of a Novel Telemedicine Treatment Program for Incarcerated Individuals With Opioid Use Disorder.

Over 10 million individuals pass through U.S. detention centers on an annual basis, with nearly two-thirds meeting criteria for drug dependence/abuse. Despite proven efficacy, treatment with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) is underutilized in jail settings-a gap that could be addressed using telemedicine. Here we describe a new program of telemedicine-based clinical provision of new/continuing buprenorphine treatment for individuals detained in a rural jail. Implementation objectives were completed between January and August 2020, and patient encounters were conducted between August 2020 and February 2021. We established (i) telemedicine hardware/software capability; (ii) a screening process; (iii) buprenorphine administration methods; (iv) necessary medical release procedures; (v) telemedicine encounter coordination and medication prescription procedures; and (vi) a research platform. Seven incarcerated patients have been treated, two of whom were referred from community treatment. Patients were mostly male (71%), non-Hispanic White (86%), and averaged 33 years old. All patients tested positive for an opioid upon intake and began/continued buprenorphine treatment in the jail. Average time to first MOUD appointment was 9 days and patients were maintained in treatment an average 21 days. Referrals for continuing community treatment were offered to all patients prior to discharge. We report successful implementation of telemedicine MOUD in a rural detention center, with treatment engagement and initiation occurring prior to the high-risk period of discharge. The fact that this program was launched during the height of the pandemic highlights the flexibility of telemedicine-based buprenorphine treatment. Challenges and obstacles to implementation of buprenorphine treatment in a correctional system are discussed.

Open-label dose-extending placebos for opioid use disorder: a protocol for a randomised controlled clinical trial with methadone treatment.

INTRODUCTION: More than 2 million individuals in the USA have an opioid use disorder (OUD). Methadone maintenance treatment is the gold standard of medication-based treatment for OUD, but high-dose methadone is associated with cardiotoxicity and respiratory complications, among other side effects. These adverse effects make enhancing the effectiveness of lower doses of methadone an attractive therapeutic goal. Long recognised for its capacity to enhance treatment outcomes for a wide range of neuropsychiatric disorders including pain, the placebo effect offers an as-yet untested avenue to such an enhancement. This approach is particularly compelling given that individuals with substance use disorder tend to have higher salience attribution and may thereby be more sensitive to placebo effects. Our study combines two promising clinical methodologies-conditioning/dose-extension and open-label placebo-to investigate whether placebo effects can increase the effective potency of methadone in treatment-seeking OUD patients. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A total of 120 newly enrolled treatment-seeking OUD patients will be randomly assigned to one of two different groups: either methadone plus daily placebo dose-extension (PDE; treatment group) or methadone/treatment as usual (control). Participants will meet with study team members five times over the course of 3 months of treatment with methadone (baseline, 2 weeks, and 1, 2 and 3 months postbaseline). Throughout this study time period, methadone dosages will be adjusted by an addiction clinician blind to patient assignment, per standard clinical methods. The primary outcome is methadone dose at 3 months. Secondary outcomes include self-report of drug use; 3-month urine toxicology screen results; and treatment retention. Exploratory outcomes include several environmental as well as personality factors associated with OUD and with propensity to demonstrate a placebo effect. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Human subjects oversight for this study is provided by the University of Maryland, Baltimore and University of Maryland, College Park Institutional Review Boards. Additionally, the study protocol is reviewed annually by an independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board. Study results will be disseminated via research conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02941809.

Themes and gaps in research for opioid use and misuse pertinent to orthopaedic injury patients.

INTRODUCTION: Prescription opioid use and misuse has accelerated rapidly in the United States over the past 2 decades. Orthopaedic surgeons are the third highest prescribers of opioids, and thus are contributing to this problem at a significant rate. Despite a surge in the number of publications on this issue, there has been little emphasis in the literature on disentangling the various factors contributing to opioid use and misuse among fracture patients. The goal of this study was to describe areas of focus and identify knowledge gaps present in the current literature on this important issue. METHODS: We employed a scoping review technique due to its ability to successfully address a broad research question. In order to better understand the type of information deemed relevant by opioid researchers, we further analyzed our search results by sorting the publications into the following categories: consumer-focused, provider-focused, focus on substitutes, industry-focused, and focus on regulations (at the institution, profession, and government level). RESULTS: The search strategies generated 8760 citations; of these, 1166 publications satisfied our inclusion criteria. Around 607 of these final abstracts were marked as "extremely relevant" (52%) and the other 559 (48%) were marked "relevant." About 36.4% of the total included articles applied to the providers and 19.6% provided information on the consumer. A total of 25.2% of the included papers concerned substitutes for opioids, 15.7% focused on regulatory power in the opioid industry, and 14% considered opioids as an industry, including power of both current stakeholders and potential new entrants. DISCUSSION: The present study provides a thorough summary of existing literature on opioid use and misuse relevant to musculoskeletal trauma patients. Furthermore, the categorical division of the literature provides a unique perspective into the drivers contributing to the opioid epidemic, and may assist in development of effective interventions to reduce excessive opioid use following traumatic injuries. Our review allowed us to identify important aspects of the opioid industry and various drivers of abuse that were absent from the literature including involvement of the pharmaceutical industry on the opioid epidemic, the involvement of insurance companies in opioid distribution, and the use of nonopioid alternative medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Factors Associated With Persistent Opioid Use Among Injured Workers' Compensation Claimants.

Importance: There is a paucity of data on persistent opioid use and factors associated with persistent opioid use among workers' compensation claimants. Objective: To determine the proportion of injured workers who filled an opioid prescription beyond 90 days from injury and the factors associated with persistent opioid use among workers' compensation claimants. Design, Setting, Participants: This retrospective cohort study collected workers' compensation claims data from January 1, 2008, to December 31, 2016, from the Chesapeake Employers' Insurance Company in Maryland. All workers' compensation claimants injured during the study years and with at least 1 filled opioid prescription were eligible for inclusion. For patients who had unique injury claims in multiple years of the study, only the first claimed injury was included in our analysis. Patients who died as a result of the claimed injury were excluded. The analysis was performed between October 2017 and August 2018. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was persistent opioid use, defined as an opioid prescription fulfillment beyond 90 days from the date of injury. Multivariable regression was used to determine prognostic factors of persistent opioid use. Results: Of the 9596 study participants (mean [SD] age, 43 [12.3] years; 6218 [65.1%] male), 2741 (28.6%) filled an opioid prescription more than 90 days from their date of injury. Participants aged 60 years or older (odds ratio [OR], 1.92; 95% CI, 1.56-2.36), crush injuries (OR, 1.55; 95% CI, 1.28-1.89), strain and sprain injuries (OR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.36-1.75), annual income more than $60 000 (OR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.07-1.61), and concomitant diagnoses for chronic joint pain (OR, 1.98; 95% CI, 1.79-2.20) were significantly associated with persistent opioid use. Compared with workers with claims designated as permanent partial disability, workers with medical-only claims were significantly less likely to have persistent opioid use at 90 days postinjury (OR, 0.17; 95% CI, 0.15-0.20). Conclusions and Relevance: A high proportion of persistent opioid use was observed in this workers' compensation cohort. Interventions to lower persistent opioid use in this population should target patients with the characteristics identified in this study.

Risk factors for gambling and substance use among recent college students.

BACKGROUND: While it is well known that substance use and gambling overlap, the degree to which this overlap can be explained by shared risk factors has not been fully explored. This study aimed to identify common and unique risk factors for gambling and substance use among young adults. METHODS: Young adults (n=1,019) in a longitudinal study since college entry were interviewed annually. Past-year frequency of seven gambling activities was assessed once (Year 5). Structural equation models evaluated suspected risk factors in two models, one for gambling with substance use as an intermediary variable, and one for substance use with gambling as the intermediary variable. RESULTS: Sixty percent gambled; 6% gambled weekly or more. Examination of the two structural models supported the existence of significant paths (a) from two of the five substance use variables (alcohol, drugs) to gambling frequency, and (b) from gambling frequency to all five substance use variables. Every risk factor associated with gambling was also associated with one or more substance use variables. Risk factors common to gambling and substance use were sex, race/ethnicity, extracurricular involvement (fraternity/sorority, athletics), impulsive sensation-seeking, and behavioral dysregulation. Risk factors unique to substance use were conduct problems, anxiety, and parent's history of alcohol and mental health problems. CONCLUSIONS: Gambling and substance use are interrelated, but with incomplete overlap in their respective risk factors. Results underscore the need for longitudinal research to elucidate their distinct etiologies.

Assessing the STIRR model of best practices for blood-borne infections of clients with severe mental illness.

OBJECTIVES: People with co-occurring severe mental illness and a substance use disorder are at markedly elevated risk of infection from HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV), but they generally do not receive basic recommended screening or preventive and treatment services. Barriers to services include lack of programs offered by mental health providers and client refusal of available services. Clients from racial-ethnic minority groups are even less likely to accept recommended services. The intervention tested was designed to facilitate integrated infectious disease programming in mental health settings and to increase acceptance of such services among clients. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial (N=236) compared enhanced treatment as usual (control) with a brief intervention to deliver best-practice services for blood-borne diseases in an urban sample of clients with co-occurring disorders who were largely from racial-ethnic minority groups. The "STIRR" intervention included Screening for HIV and HCV risk factors, Testing for HIV and hepatitis, Immunization against hepatitis A and B, Risk reduction counseling, and medical treatment Referral and support at the site of mental health care. RESULTS: Clients randomly assigned to the STIRR intervention had high levels (over 80%) of participation and acceptance of core services. They were more likely to be tested for HBV and HCV, to be immunized against hepatitis A virus and HBV, and to increase their knowledge about hepatitis and reduce their substance abuse. However, they showed no reduction in risk behavior, were no more likely to be referred to care, and showed no increase in HIV knowledge. Intervention costs were $541 per client (including $234 for blood tests). CONCLUSIONS: STIRR appears to be efficacious in providing a basic, best-practice package of interventions for clients with co-occurring disorders.

Investigating habitat value to inform contaminant remediation options: approach.

Habitat valuation methods are most often developed and used to prioritize candidate lands for conservation. In this study the intent of habitat valuation was to inform the decision-making process for remediation of chemical contaminants on specific lands or surface water bodies. Methods were developed to summarize dimensions of habitat value for six representative aquatic and terrestrial contaminated sites at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) on the US Department of Energy Oak Ridge Reservation in Oak Ridge, TN, USA. Several general valuation metrics were developed for three broad categories: site use by groups of organisms, site rarity, and use value added from spatial context. Examples of use value metrics are taxa richness, a direct measure of number of species that inhabit an area, complexity of habitat structure, an indirect measure of potential number of species that may use the area, and land use designation, a measure of the length of time that the area will be available for use. Measures of rarity included presence of rare species or communities. Examples of metrics for habitat use value added from spatial context included similarity or complementarity of neighboring habitat patches and presence of habitat corridors. More specific metrics were developed for groups of organisms in contaminated streams, ponds, and terrestrial ecosystems. For each of these metrics, cutoff values for high, medium, and low habitat value were suggested, based on available information on distributions of organisms and landscape features, as well as habitat use information. A companion paper describes the implementation of these habitat valuation metrics and scoring criteria in the remedial investigation for ETTP.

Investigating habitat value to inform contaminant remediation options: case study.

Habitat valuation methods were implemented to support remedial decisions for aquatic and terrestrial contaminated sites at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) on the US Department of Energy (DOE) Oak Ridge Reservation in Oak Ridge, TN, USA. The habitat valuation was undertaken for six contaminated sites: Contractor's Spoil Area, K-901-N Disposal Area, K-770 Scrapyard, K-1007-P1 pond, K-901 pond, and the Mitchell Branch stream. Four of these sites are within the industrial use area of ETTP and two are in the Black Oak Ridge Conservation Easement. These sites represent terrestrial and aquatic habitat for vertebrates, terrestrial habitat for plants, and aquatic habitat for benthic invertebrates. Current and potential future, no-action (no remediation) scenarios were evaluated primarily using existing information. Valuation metrics and scoring criteria were developed in a companion paper, this volume. The habitat valuation consists of extensive narratives, as well as scores for aspects of site use value, site rarity, and use value added from spatial context. Metrics for habitat value were expressed with respect to different spatial scales, depending on data availability. There was significant variation in habitat value among the six sites, among measures for different taxa at a single site, between measures of use and rarity at a single site, and among measures for particular taxa at a single site with respect to different spatial scales. Most sites had aspects of low, medium, and high habitat value. Few high scores for current use value were given. These include: wetland plant communities at all aquatic sites, Lepomid sunfish and waterbirds at 1007-P1 pond, and Lepomid sunfish and amphibians at K-901 pond. Aquatic sites create a high-value ecological corridor for waterbirds, and the Contractor's Spoil Area and possibly the K-901-N Disposal Site have areas that are part of a strong terrestrial ecological corridor. The only example of recent observations of rare species at these sites is the gray bat observed at the K-1007-P1 pond. Some aspects of habitat value are expected to improve under no-action scenarios at a few of the sites. Methods are applicable to other contaminated sites where sufficient ecological data are available for the site and region.

OD's and DT's: using movies to teach intoxication and withdrawal syndromes to medical students.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether second-year medical students believed that the use of movies helped them to learn about intoxication and withdrawal syndromes. METHODS: A videotape was made by transferring clips of various commercially available films as well as clips from several television news shows and a training film displaying intoxication and withdrawal syndromes. Students attending the lecture were asked to complete a brief, anonymous questionnaire following the lecture. RESULTS: More than 90% of the 89 respondents believed that the clips helped them to recognize these syndromes and appreciate their potential severity. All students believed that the movie clips would help them remember the syndromes, with greater than 90% reporting that it would help "very much." CONCLUSIONS: The use of movie clips appears to be a useful tool in teaching medical students about intoxication and withdrawal syndromes seen with various substances of abuse.

The use of intravenous buprenorphine for the treatment of opioid withdrawal in medically ill hospitalized patients.

The aim of this study was to assess the safety of buprenorphine administered intravenously for the treatment of opioid withdrawal in medically ill hospitalized patients. Data regarding demographic information, number of doses of buprenorphine, and measures of buprenorphine's effects were collected via chart reviews for 30 heroin-dependent patients who received buprenorphine intravenously during their hospitalization for an acute medical problem. No respiratory depression was observed, and no patients reported feeling "high." All patients reported that buprenorphine decreased withdrawal symptoms. Thus, intravenous administration of buprenorphine appears to be safe for the treatment of opioid withdrawal.