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Research Studies is a monthly compilation of research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers and recently published in journals or newsletters.
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1 to 11 of 11 Research Studies Displayed
Ali MM, McClellan C, West KD
Medical marijuana laws, marijuana use, and opioid-related outcomes among women in the United States.
This study examined whether state medical marijuana laws (MMLs) was associated with lower levels of opioid-related outcomes. Data was drawn from the 2002-2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health to compare opioid misuse in states with and without MMLs among all women, pregnant women, and parenting women. It also invested the impact of MMLs on marijuana use and marijuana use disorder. There was found to be no association of MMLs with opioid misuse, opioid misuse initiation, or opioid use disorder among all women, pregnant women and parenting women. However there was a positive correlation with marijuana use and marijuana use disorder among all women and women with children. MMLs were also associated with an increase in the frequency of opioid misuse in pregnant women and a decrease in the frequency of opioid misuse for parenting women.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation:
Ali MM, McClellan C, West KD .
Medical marijuana laws, marijuana use, and opioid-related outcomes among women in the United States.
Womens Health Issues 2021 Jan-Feb;31(1):24-30. doi: 10.1016/j.whi.2020.09.003..
Keywords:
Women, Opioids, Substance Abuse, Medication, Policy, Practice Patterns
Kuhns LM, Carlino B, Greeley K
A chart review of substance use screening and related documentation among adolescents in outpatient pediatric clinics: implications for practice.
This study looked at rates of substance use screening and related documentation among adolescents aged 12-17 in outpatient pediatric clinics in a large academic medical center. The authors abstracted a random sample of 127 records and coded clinical notes to describe screening cases and related characteristics. They then analyzed descriptive patterns within the data to calculate screening rates, characteristics of screening, and identify related factors. Rates of screening by providers was 72% for each common substance and a total of 6% of patients reported substance use during screening.
AHRQ-funded; HS026385.
Citation:
Kuhns LM, Carlino B, Greeley K .
A chart review of substance use screening and related documentation among adolescents in outpatient pediatric clinics: implications for practice.
Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy 2020 May 25;15(1):36. doi: 10.1186/s13011-020-00276-4..
Keywords:
Children/Adolescents, Substance Abuse, Screening, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Alcohol Use, Practice Patterns, Primary Care
Newberry CI, Casazza GC, Pruitt LC
Prescription patterns and opioid usage in sinonasal surgery.
The goal of this study was to identify factors associated with variable opioid usage and to delineate optimal prescription patterns for sinonasal surgery. The researchers found that patients used 9.3% of their full prescription and only 2.6% required a refill. The amount used was not associated with complexity of endoscopic sinus surgery, type of opiate prescribed, gender, distance living from hospital, or current opioid usage before surgery. They concluded that opioids are overprescribed after sinonasal surgery and that the amount of postoperative opiate prescribed should be greatly reduced and may be based on the specific procedures performed.
AHRQ-funded; HS024638.
Citation:
Newberry CI, Casazza GC, Pruitt LC .
Prescription patterns and opioid usage in sinonasal surgery.
Int Forum Allergy Rhinol 2020 Mar;10(3):381-87. doi: 10.1002/alr.22478..
Keywords:
Opioids, Medication, Pain, Surgery, Respiratory Conditions, Healthcare Utilization, Practice Patterns, Substance Abuse
Abbasi AB, Salisbury-Afshar E, Berberet CE
Opioid prescribing patterns before fatal opioid overdose.
This study examined opioid prescribing patterns the year before death of 1,893 Illinois residents who died of an opioid-related overdose in 2016. Their prescription records were linked in from existing Prescription Monitoring Program records. The majority (1,461) died from illicit opioids and only 309 deaths involved prescription opioids. For the residents who used prescription opioids, 76% filled 10.7 prescriptions per decedent compared with 36% of illicit opioid users totaling 2.6 prescriptions per decedent. Death rates were twice as high for black residents with illicit opioids than white residents. The authors concluded that prescribing patterns alone may be not sufficient to identify patients at high risk for opioid overdose, especially for those using illicit opioids.
AHRQ-funded; HS022433.
Citation:
Abbasi AB, Salisbury-Afshar E, Berberet CE .
Opioid prescribing patterns before fatal opioid overdose.
Am J Prev Med 2020 Feb;58(2):250-53. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2019.09.022..
Keywords:
Opioids, Substance Abuse, Medication, Practice Patterns
Heins SE, Frey KP, Alexander GC
Reducing high-dose opioid prescribing: state-level morphine equivalent daily dose policies, 2007-2017.
This paper looked at current state-level policies in the United States from January 2007-May 2017 limiting high morphine equivalent daily dose (MEDD) prescribing. State-level threshold policies were reviewed using LexisNexis and Westlaw Next for legislative acts and Google for nonlegislative state-level policies. State websites were also reviewed to identify additional policies. Policies were then independently double-coded on the categories: state, agency/organization, policy type, effective date, threshold level, and policy exceptions. Currently 22 states have at least 1 MEDD policy, most commonly guidelines (14 states). Other states have prior authorizations (4 states), rules/regulations (4 states), legislative acts (3 states), claim denials (2 states), and alert systems/automatic patient reports (2 states). Thresholds vary widely (30-300 mg MEDD), with higher thresholds corresponding to more restrictive policies (claim denial), and lower thresholds corresponding to less restrictive policies (guidelines). The majority of policies exclude patients with terminal illnesses or acute pain.
AHRQ-funded; HS025557.
Citation:
Heins SE, Frey KP, Alexander GC .
Reducing high-dose opioid prescribing: state-level morphine equivalent daily dose policies, 2007-2017.
Pain Med 2020 Feb;21(2):308-16. doi: 10.1093/pm/pnz038..
Keywords:
Opioids, Medication, Policy, Practice Patterns, Substance Abuse
Tam CA, Dauw CA, Ghani KR
New persistent opioid use after outpatient ureteroscopy for upper tract stone treatment.
The purpose of this study was to measure the incidence of persistent opioid use following ureteroscopy (URS). Over 100 Americans die every day from opioid overdose. Recent studies suggest that many opioid addictions surface after surgery. The investigators concluded that nearly 1 in 16 opioid-naive patients developed new persistent opioid use after URS. New persistent opioid use was associated with the amount of opioid prescribed at the time of URS. The authors suggest that, given these findings, urologists should re-evaluate their post-URS opioid prescribing patterns.
AHRQ-funded; HS024525; HS024728.
Citation:
Tam CA, Dauw CA, Ghani KR .
New persistent opioid use after outpatient ureteroscopy for upper tract stone treatment.
Urology 2019 Dec;134:103-08. doi: 10.1016/j.urology.2019.08.042..
Keywords:
Opioids, Medication, Substance Abuse, Surgery, Practice Patterns
Springer R, Marino M,, Bailey SR
Prescription opioid use patterns, use disorder diagnoses and addiction treatment receipt after the 2014 Medicaid expansion in Oregon.
This study compared the prevalence of receipt of opioid prescriptions and opioid use disorder (OUD), along with time from OUD diagnosis to medication-assisted treatment (MAT) receipt between Oregon residents who had been continuously insured by Medicaid, were newly insured after Medicaid expansion in 2014 or returned to Medicaid coverage after expansion.
AHRQ-funded; HS024270.
Citation:
Springer R, Marino M,, Bailey SR .
Prescription opioid use patterns, use disorder diagnoses and addiction treatment receipt after the 2014 Medicaid expansion in Oregon.
Addiction 2019 Oct;114(10):1775-84. doi: 10.1111/add.14667..
Keywords:
Opioids, Medication, Substance Abuse, Medicaid, Practice Patterns, Health Insurance, Access to Care, Policy
Sekhri S, Arora NS, Cottrell H
Probability of opioid prescription refilling after surgery: does initial prescription dose matter?
In this study, the investigators sought to determine the correlation between the probability of postoperative opioid prescription refills and the amount of opioid prescribed, hypothesizing that a greater initial prescription yields a lower probability of refill. The investigators concluded that the probability of refilling prescription opioids after surgery was not correlated with initial prescription strength, suggesting surgeons could prescribe smaller prescriptions without influencing refill requests.
AHRQ-funded; HS023313.
Citation:
Sekhri S, Arora NS, Cottrell H .
Probability of opioid prescription refilling after surgery: does initial prescription dose matter?
Ann Surg 2018 Aug;268(2):271-76. doi: 10.1097/sla.0000000000002308..
Keywords:
Medication, Opioids, Pain, Practice Patterns, Substance Abuse, Surgery
Axeen S, Seabury SA, Menchine M
Emergency department contribution to the prescription opioid epidemic.
The investigators used MEPS data to characterize the relative contribution of emergency departments (EDs) to national opioid prescribing, to estimate trends in opioid prescribing by site of care, and to examine whether higher-risk opioid users receive a disproportionate quantity of their opioids from ED settings. During the study period, they found that the relative contribution of EDs to the prescription opioid problem was modest and declining. They therefore recommended that further efforts to reduce the quantity of opioids prescribed focus on office-based settings.
AHRQ-funded; HS024251.
Citation:
Axeen S, Seabury SA, Menchine M .
Emergency department contribution to the prescription opioid epidemic.
Ann Emerg Med 2018 Jun;71(6):659-67.e3. doi: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2017.12.007..
Keywords:
Behavioral Health, Emergency Department, Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), Medication, Opioids, Practice Patterns, Substance Abuse
Cook B, Creedon T, Wang Y
Examining racial/ethnic differences in patterns of benzodiazepine prescription and misuse.
Electronic health record data from a large healthcare system were used to describe racial/ethnic, sex, and age differences in benzodiazepines (BZD) use and dependence. Among patients with a BZD prescription, the investigators assessed differences in: 1.) the likelihood of subsequently receiving a BZD dependence diagnosis, 2.) the number of BZD prescriptions, 3.) receiving only one BZD prescription, and 4.) receiving 18 or more BZD prescriptions.
AHRQ-funded; HS021486.
Citation:
Cook B, Creedon T, Wang Y .
Examining racial/ethnic differences in patterns of benzodiazepine prescription and misuse.
Drug Alcohol Depend 2018 Jun 1;187:29-34. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2018.02.011..
Keywords:
Medication, Practice Patterns, Racial / Ethnic Minorities, Substance Abuse
Smith RJ, Kilaru AS, Perrone J
How, why, and for whom do emergency medicine providers use prescription drug monitoring programs?
The authors examined how emergency physicians use Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PDMPs), for which patients, and for what reasons. They found that providers use the information in PDMPs to alter clinical decisions and guide opioid prescribing patterns. Physicians used the databases additionally for improving their ability to facilitate discussions on addiction and for providing patient education. The authors recommended minimizing administrative barriers to PDMP access and suggested that alternative PDMP uses be further studied to determine their appropriateness and potentially expand their role in clinical practice.
AHRQ-funded; HS021956.
Citation:
Smith RJ, Kilaru AS, Perrone J .
How, why, and for whom do emergency medicine providers use prescription drug monitoring programs?
Pain Med 2015 Jun;16(6):1122-31. doi: 10.1111/pme.12700.
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Keywords:
Decision Making, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Medication, Practice Patterns, Substance Abuse
