Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34378487›Full record

ArticleSubstance use & misuse2021

Migration Patterns from an Open Illicit Drug Scene and Emergency Department Visits among People Who Use Illicit Drugs in Vancouver, Canada.

Saif-El-Din El-Akkad, Kanna Hayashi, Huiru Dong, Andrew Day, Rachael McKendry, Gaganpreet Kaur, Rolando Barrios, Kora Debeck, M-J Milloy, Lianping Ti

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Substance use & misuse, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Open Drug Scenes Survey in Brazilian cities: main findings from São Paulo, Fortaleza, and Brasília.Revista brasileira de epidemiologia = Brazilian journal of epidemiology · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Saif-El-Din El-AkkadDepartment of Medicine, University of British Columbia, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Kanna HayashiBritish Columbia Centre on Substance Use (BCCSU), Vancouver, BC, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-3843-2928
Huiru DongBritish Columbia Centre on Substance Use (BCCSU), Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Andrew DayVancouver Coastal Health Authority, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Rachael McKendryVancouver Coastal Health Authority, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Gaganpreet KaurDepartment of Medicine, University of British Columbia, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Rolando BarriosBritish Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Kora DebeckBritish Columbia Centre on Substance Use (BCCSU), Vancouver, BC, Canada.
M-J MilloyDepartment of Medicine, University of British Columbia, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Lianping TiDepartment of Medicine, University of British Columbia, St. Paul's Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Funding

Vancouver Drug Users Study: The Impacts of Evolving Drug Use Patterns on HIV/AIDSU01DA038886 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA · PI DEBECK, KORA, HAYASHI, KANNA · 2015 to 2024
$12.1M
Impacts of universal access to HIV/AIDS care among HIV+ injection drug usersU01DA021525 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA · PI MILLOY, M-J · 2017 to 2024
$4.3M
CIHR MSH-141971CIHR SMN–139148NIDA NIH HHS U01 DA021525NIDA NIH HHS U01 DA038886
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPeople who use illicit drugs (PWUD) experience various adverse health outcomes leading to increased healthcare service utilization. PWUD are also a highly mobile population which poses challenges to healthcare delivery. The objective of this study was to identify migration patterns from the Downtown Eastside (DTES), an urban illicit drug scene in Vancouver and to estimate the impact of different migration patterns on two outcomes: a) emergency department (ED) visits and b) ED visits resulting in inpatient admission among PWUD.

methodsThree prospective cohorts of PWUD in Vancouver were linked with regional ED data. We defined the optimal number of trajectory groups that best represented distinct patterns of migration from Vancouver's DTES using a latent class growth analysis. Then, generalized estimating equations were used to estimate the effect of migration patterns on the two ED outcomes.

resultsFour distinct migration trajectory patterns were identified among the 1210 included participants: PWUD who consistently lived in the DTES, those who migrated out of DTES early, those who migrated out of DTES late, and those who frequently revisited the DTES. Participants who frequently revisited the DTES had higher odds of an ED visit (adjusted odds ratio = 1.62; 95% confidence interval: 1.28-2.06). There was no significant association between migration patterns and inpatient admission.

conclusionsWe found that PWUD who frequently revisited the DTES were more likely to have utilized the ED, suggesting that there may be a subgroup of PWUD who are at increased risk of experiencing negative health outcomes.Supplemental data for this article is available online at 10.1080/10826084.2021.1958849.

Indexed as

Drug UsersIllicit DrugsCanadaEmergency Service, HospitalHumansProspective StudiesIllicit DrugsEmergency departmentmigration patternsopen illicit drug scenepeople who use illicit drugs

Identifiers

PMID34378487
PMCPMC8855781

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.