Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36027767›Full record

ArticleThe International journal on drug policy2022

Impact of COVID-19 on the characteristics of opioid overdose deaths in Arkansas.

Mandana Rezaeiahari, Brian J Fairman

Abstract read
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Article in The International journal on drug policy, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

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5citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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3 · Its place in the literature

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5 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Mandana RezaeiahariDepartment of Health Policy and Management, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA. Electronic address: mrezaeiahari@uams.edu.
Brian J FairmanDepartment of Epidemiology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 72205, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIn the US, spikes in drug overdose deaths overlapping with the COVID-19 pandemic create concern that persons who use drugs are especially vulnerable. This study aimed to compare the trends in opioid overdose deaths and characterize opioid overdose deaths by drug subtype and person characteristics pre-COVID (2017-2019) and one-year post-COVID-19 emergence (2020).

methodsWe obtained death certificates on drug overdose deaths in Arkansas from January 1, 2017, through December 31, 2020. Our analyses consisted of an interrupted time-series and segmented regression analysis to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the number of opioid overdose deaths.

resultsThe proportion of opioid overdose deaths increased by 36% post-COVID emergence (95% CI: 14%, 59%). The trend in overdose deaths involving synthetic narcotics other than methadone, such as fentanyl and tramadol, has increased since 2018 (74 in 2018 vs 79 in 2019; p=0.02 and 79 in 2019 versus 158 in 2020; p = 0.03). Opioid overdose deaths involving methamphetamine have more than doubled (36 in 2019 vs 82 in 2020; p = 0.06) despite remaining steady from 2018 to 2019. Synthetic narcotics have surpassed methamphetamine (71% vs. 37%) as the leading cause of opioid overdose deaths in Arkansas during the pandemic. This study found that synthetic narcotics are the significant drivers of the increase in opioid overdose deaths in Arkansas during the pandemic.

conclusionsThe co-occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the drug abuse epidemic further highlights the increased need for expanding awareness and availability of resources for treating substance use disorders.

Indexed as

COVID-19Drug OverdoseMethamphetamineOpiate OverdoseSubstance-Related DisordersTramadolAnalgesics, OpioidArkansasFentanylHumansMethadoneNarcoticsPandemicsAnalgesics, OpioidFentanylMethadoneMethamphetamineNarcoticsTramadolCOVID-19Death certificateOpioid overdose death

Identifiers

PMID36027767
PMCPMC9376304

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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.