ArticleJournal of substance abuse treatment2020
One year of methadone maintenance treatment in a fentanyl endemic area: Safety, repeated exposure, retention, and remission.
Article in Journal of substance abuse treatment, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 33 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
33 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 55 citations in OpenAlex.
- Evidence-based consensus guidelines for the pharmacological management of substance dependence: Recommendations from the British Association for Psychopharmacology.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2026Guideline
- An initial randomized controlled trial of a Combined Medication and Behavioral Activation Treatment (CoMBAT) for people with opioid use disorder.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2025Trial
- Associations between fentanyl use and initiation, persistence, and retention on medications for opioid use disorder among people living with uncontrolled HIV disease.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2021Trial
- Concurrent Use of Extra-Medical Medication for Opioid Use Disorder Among Adults Prescribed Methadone or Buprenorphine: A Cohort Study of Urban Adults Who Have Injected Drugs.Drug and alcohol review · 2026Article
- Barriers and facilitators to methadone dispensing for opioid use disorder in community pharmacies: A scoping review.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2026Review
- Sociodemographic Characteristics and Drug Use Practices Associated with Fentanyl Use Frequency Among People Who Use Drugs in Rhode Island.Substance use & misuse · 2026Article
- An Examination of How People Who Use Drugs Conceptualize the Benefits and Drawbacks of Using Overdose Prevention Centers.Contemporary drug problems · 2025Article
- State Laws Banning Prior Authorization For Medications For Opioid Use Disorder Increased Substantially, 2015-23.Health affairs (Project Hope) · 2025Article
- Restrictive State Opioid Treatment Program Regulations Constrain Local Access To Methadone Maintenance Treatment.Health affairs (Project Hope) · 2025Article
- Duration of Methadone and Buprenorphine-Naloxone Treatment.JAMA network open · 2025Article
- Case series: Symptom-inhibited fentanyl induction (SIFI) onto treatment-dose opioid agonist therapy in a community setting.The American journal on addictions · 2025Article
- "I still can feel the sickness": Withdrawal experiences of people on methadone maintenance treatment.Journal of substance use and addiction treatment · 2025Article
- Examining the association between fentanyl use and perceived adequacy of methadone dose: A retrospective cohort study.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2025Article
- Identifying opioid agonist treatment prescriber networks from health administrative data: A validation study.PloS one · 2025Article
- Enhancing translation: A need to leverage complex preclinical models of addictive drugs to accelerate substance use treatment options.Pharmacology, biochemistry, and behavior · 2024Review
- Access to treatment before and after Medicare coverage of opioid treatment programs.Health affairs scholar · 2024Article
- Understanding the delivery of substance use treatment services to transgender and gender-diverse people: Findings from a mixed-methods study of healthcare professionals.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2024Article
- A Guide to Expanding the Use of Buprenorphine Beyond Standard Initiations for Opioid Use Disorder.Drugs in R&D · 2023Review
- Observational
- Polydrug use among patients on methadone medication treatment: Evidence from urine drug testing to inform patient safety.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
introductionFentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid that has contributed to increasing overdose deaths in the United States in recent years. Concern over safety and efficacy of agonist treatment for fentanyl use may limit access to treatment. This study sought to address these potential concerns in a naturalistic setting.
objectivesMeasure 12-month treatment outcomes for methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) in a fentanyl endemic area. OUTCOMES: Primary: 1) Treatment retention; 2) sustained remission (defined as 3 consecutive negative screens); 3) return to use; 4) methadone dosage required; and 5) number of days to achieve remission. Secondary: Mortality.
methodsA naturalistic follow-up study and retrospective review of consecutive patients newly admitted to a single methadone maintenance treatment program in Rhode Island.
resultsWe observed 154 unique intake events (representing 151 patients). Eighty percent (n = 121) tested positive for fentanyl at intake. Seventy-five percent of patients achieved remission within the 12-month study period. One-year retention was 53% for fentanyl-exposed individuals and 47% for those not exposed. The majority (99%) of patients who remained in treatment at 12 months achieved remission. We saw prolonged, sustained remission in 44% of patients exposed to fentanyl at intake and 47% of those who were not. Dose and time to remission were similar. Unfortunately, 4 patients died after leaving MMT prematurely.
conclusionsThis study suggests MMT is safe despite repeated exposure to fentanyl while taking methadone. Remission is achievable, and MMT is protective against death among fentanyl-exposed patients while in treatment.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.