Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37605451›Full record

ArticleJournal of public health (Oxford, England)2023

Preventable deaths involving opioids in England and Wales, 2013-2022: a systematic case series of coroners' reports.

Francesco Dernie, Harrison S France, Elizabeth T Thomas, Maja Bilip, Nicholas J DeVito, Robin E Ferner, Anthony R Cox, Carl Heneghan, Jeffrey K Aronson, Georgia C Richards

Open access · hybridAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of public health (Oxford, England), 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
3.2field-weighted citation impact, top 8% of its field
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

2 citing papers in PubMed, 11 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Private prescribing of controlled opioids in England, 2014-2021: a retrospective observational study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2024
    Observational
  2. 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 at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Francesco DernieOxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-5344-1967
Harrison S FranceOxford Medical School, Medical Sciences Divisional Office, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK.
Elizabeth T ThomasCentre for Evidence-Based Medicine, Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
Maja BilipDepartment of Internal Medicine, Thames Hospital, MacKay Street, Thames 3500, New Zealand.
Nicholas J DeVitoBennett Institute for Applied Data Science, Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
Robin E FernerInstitute of Clinical Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
Anthony R CoxInstitute of Clinical Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-2294-3440
Carl HeneghanCentre for Evidence-Based Medicine, Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
Jeffrey K AronsonCentre for Evidence-Based Medicine, Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.
Georgia C RichardsCentre for Evidence-Based Medicine, Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-0244-5620
University of Oxford · GBBirmingham City Hospital · GBOxford University Hospitals NHS Trust · GB

Funding

National Institute for Health ResearchPreventable Deaths Tracker
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundOpioid deaths have increased in England and Wales. Coroners' Prevention of Future Deaths reports (PFDs) provide important insights that may enable safer use and avert harms, yet reports implicating opioids have not been synthesized. We aimed to identify opioid-related PFDs and explore coroners' concerns to prevent future deaths.

methodsIn this systematic case series, we screened 3897 coronial PFDs dated between 01 July 2013 and 23 February 2022, obtained by web scraping the UK's Courts and Tribunals Judiciary website. PFDs were included when an opioid was implicated in the death. Included PFDs were descriptively analysed, and content analysis was used to assess concerns reported by coroners.

resultsOpioids were involved in 219 deaths reported in PFDs (5·6% of PFDs), equating to 4418 years of life lost (median 33 years/person). Morphine (29%), methadone (23%) and diamorphine (16%) were the most common implicated opioids. Coroners most frequently raised concerns regarding systems and protocols (52%) or safety issues (15%). These concerns were most often addressed to National Health Service (NHS) organizations (51%), but response rates were low overall (47%).

conclusionsOpioids could be used more safely if coroners' concerns in PFDs were addressed by national organizations such as NHS bodies, government agencies and policymakers, as well as individual prescribing clinicians.

Indexed as

Analgesics, OpioidCoroners and Medical ExaminersCause of DeathEnglandHumansState MedicineWalesAnalgesics, Opioidaddictiondrug abusemortalityopioid

Identifiers

PMID37605451
PMCPMC10687604
OpenAlexW4386046992

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.