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Janssen E, Vuolo M. Correlates of Stimulant Use among People Who Use Heroin Undergoing Treatment in Out-Patient Facilities in France, 2010-2020. Subst Use Misuse 2024; 59:353-361. [PMID: 37859423 DOI: 10.1080/10826084.2023.2270682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Background: Polydrug use has been implicated in driving a "fourth wave" of the overdose crisis in North America, specifically through concurrent use of stimulants and opioids, especially fentanyl. In France, however, heroin has historically been and remains the easiest-to-access opioid, accounting for most drug treatment demand. Whether similar polydrug use is increasing in Western Europe remains understudied, despite severe health implications and potential inadequate public health responses.Methods: We take advantage of a nation-wide dataset containing information on all patients serviced in treatment centers in France from 2010 to 2020. We conduct Poisson regression to determine the main predictors of stimulant use among people who use heroin (PWUH) and opioids (PWUO) generally.Results: Heroin remains the primary opioid within drug treatment in France. A decreasing number of out-patients seeking treatment for heroin use has been accompanied by an increasing trend of stimulant use over time, most commonly with powder cocaine. Our results suggest a significant increase of crack cocaine use among the most vulnerable PWUH. Concurrent use of stimulants among PWUH was positively associated with use of alcohol, cannabis, unprescribed psychotropics and hallucinogens, and negatively with tobacco. Similar results were found for all in-treatment PWUO.Conclusions: Our results uncover heterogeneity in the profiles of PWUH that should be fully acknowledged to ensure better efficiency in substance use clinical practices and policy, while simultaneously drawing attention to trends in concurrent opioid-stimulant use outside North America. We advocate for an extension of the generalized risk framework and its implementation in prevention programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Janssen
- French Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction (Observatoire Français des Drogues et des Tendances Addictives - OFDT), Paris, France
| | - Michael Vuolo
- Department of Sociology, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
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Corser J, Palis H, Fleury M, Lamb J, Lock K, McDougall J, Mehta A, Newman C, Spence H, Buxton JA. Identifying behaviours for survival and wellness among people who use methamphetamine with opioids in British Columbia: a qualitative study. Harm Reduct J 2022; 19:46. [PMID: 35590375 PMCID: PMC9118627 DOI: 10.1186/s12954-022-00630-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background British Columbia (BC) has been in a state of public health emergency since 2016, due to the unprecedented numbers of fatal and non-fatal drug toxicity (i.e. overdose) events. Methamphetamine detection in illicit drug toxicity deaths increased from 14% in 2012 to 43% in 2020 suggesting a concerning trend of concurrent methamphetamine and opioid use in BC, consistent with rising patterns identified across North America. People who use methamphetamine concurrently with opioids face an elevated risk of harm. This study aimed to identify behaviours for survival and wellness practiced by people who concurrently use methamphetamine and opioids. Methods One-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted by peer research assistants in person and by telephone. Thematic analysis was carried out to identify patterns in behaviours participants described as important to their safety in the context of concurrent use of methamphetamine and opioids. Results Participants (n = 22) were distributed across the province with at least four participants from each of the five geographic health regions: 64% self-identified as men, and 50% self-identified as Indigenous. Daily methamphetamine use was reported by 72.7% of participants, and 67.3% reported using alone either often or always. Participants made several considerations and adaptations in order to balance the perceived benefits and risks of their use of methamphetamine with opioids. Two overarching themes were identified to describe how participants adapted their use for survival and wellness. The first was personal safety behaviours which included self-regulation and self-care behaviours. The second was interpersonal safety behaviours which included using alongside peers, and engaging with peer-led services (e.g. community outreach organizations) and public health-led services (e.g. overdose prevention sites) to reduce the risk of harm. Participants identified many gaps in available services to meet their diverse needs. Conclusions This manuscript identified diversity in participants’ methamphetamine and opioid use (i.e. frequency, route of administration), and a range of behaviours that were performed to improve wellness and survival while using methamphetamine and opioids. Harm reduction and treatment responses must be robust and adaptable to respond to the diversity of patterns of substance use among people who use methamphetamine and opioids concurrently, so as to not perpetuate harm and leave people behind.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny Corser
- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Heather Palis
- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Mathew Fleury
- Faculty of Health Sciences, SFU, Blusson Hall, Room 11300, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada.,First Nations Health Authority, 1166 Alberni St, Vancouver, BC, V6E 1A5, Canada
| | - Jess Lamb
- PEEP- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Kurt Lock
- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Jenny McDougall
- PEEP- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Amiti Mehta
- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Cheri Newman
- PEEP- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada
| | - Heather Spence
- KANDU - Kelowna Area Network of Drug Users, Kelowna, Canada
| | - Jane A Buxton
- BC Centre for Disease Control, 655 W 12th Ave, Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4R4, Canada. .,School of Population and Public Health, UBC, 2206 E Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada.
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Palis H, Marchand K, Peachey GS, Westfall J, Lock K, MacDonald S, Jun J, Bojanczyk-Shibata A, Harrison S, Marsh DC, Schechter MT, Oviedo-Joekes E. Exploring the effectiveness of dextroamphetamine for the treatment of stimulant use disorder: a qualitative study with patients receiving injectable opioid agonist treatment. SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT PREVENTION AND POLICY 2021; 16:68. [PMID: 34530878 PMCID: PMC8444161 DOI: 10.1186/s13011-021-00399-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Background A high proportion of people receiving both oral and injectable opioid agonist treatment report concurrent use of stimulants (i.e. cocaine and or amphetamines), which has been associated with higher rates of continued illicit opioid use and treatment dropout. A recent randomized controlled trial demonstrated the effectiveness of dextroamphetamine (a prescribed stimulant) at reducing craving for and use of cocaine among patients receiving injectable opioid agonist treatment. Following this evidence, dextroamphetamine has been prescribed to patients with stimulant use disorder at a clinic in Vancouver. This study investigates perceptions of the effectiveness of dextroamphetamine from the perspective of these patients. Methods Data were collected using small focus groups and one-on-one interviews with patients who were currently or formerly receiving dextroamphetamine (n = 20). Thematic analysis was conducted using an iterative approach, moving between data collection and analysis to search for patterns in the data across transcripts. This process led to the defining and naming of three central themes responding to the research question. Results Participants reported a range of stimulant use types, including cocaine (n = 8), methamphetamine (n = 8), or both (n = 4). Three central themes were identified as relating to participants’ perceptions of the effectiveness of the medication: 1) achieving a substitution effect (i.e. extent to which dextroamphetamine provided a substitution for the effect they received from use of illicit stimulants); 2) Reaching a preferred dose (i.e. speed of titration and effect of the dose received); and 3) Ease of medication access (i.e. preference for take home doses (i.e. carries) vs. medication integrated into care at the clinic). Conclusion In the context of continued investigation of pharmacological treatments for stimulant use disorder, the present study has highlighted how the study of clinical outcomes could be extended to account for factors that contribute to perceptions of effectiveness from the perspective of patients. In practice, elements of treatment delivery (e.g. dosing and dispensation protocols) can be adjusted to allow for various scenarios (e.g. on site vs. take home dosing) by which dextroamphetamine and other pharmacological stimulants could be implemented to provide “effective” treatment for people with a wide range of treatment goals and needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather Palis
- Centre for Health Evaluation & Outcome Sciences, Providence Health Care, St. Paul's Hospital, 575- 1081 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 1Y6, Canada.
| | - Kirsten Marchand
- Centre for Health Evaluation & Outcome Sciences, Providence Health Care, St. Paul's Hospital, 575- 1081 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 1Y6, Canada
| | | | | | - Kurt Lock
- Centre for Health Evaluation & Outcome Sciences, Providence Health Care, St. Paul's Hospital, 575- 1081 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 1Y6, Canada
| | - Scott MacDonald
- Providence Health Care, Providence Crosstown Clinic, 84 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 1G6, Canada
| | - Jennifer Jun
- Providence Health Care, Providence Crosstown Clinic, 84 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 1G6, Canada
| | - Anna Bojanczyk-Shibata
- Providence Health Care, Providence Crosstown Clinic, 84 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 1G6, Canada
| | - Scott Harrison
- Providence Health Care, Providence Crosstown Clinic, 84 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 1G6, Canada
| | - David C Marsh
- Northern Ontario School of Medicine, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, ON, P3E 2C6, Canada.,Canadian Addiction Treatment Centres, 175 Commerce Valley West, Suite 300, Markham, Ontario, L3T 7P6, Canada.,ICES North, 41 Ramsey Lake Rd, Sudbury, ON, P3E 5J1, Canada.,Health Sciences North Research Institute, 56 Walford Rd, Sudbury, ON, P3E 2H2, Canada
| | - Martin T Schechter
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, 2206 East Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | - Eugenia Oviedo-Joekes
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, 2206 East Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
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