ArticleThe International journal on drug policy2024
Volatile drug use and overdose during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.
Article in The International journal on drug policy, 2024. 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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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of State Telemedicine Policies on Substance Use Disorder Treatment During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of general internal medicine · 2026Article
- Medicaid Expansion Boosted Specialty Treatment Episodes For Substance Use Disorder In Expansion States, 2010-22.Health affairs (Project Hope) · 2025Article
- Emergency Department Visits, Inpatient Hospitalizations, and Nonfatal and Fatal Drug Overdoses During COVID-19 Among Veterans With Opioid Use Disorder.Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs · 2025Article
- Cannabis legalization and increasing cannabis use in the United States: Data from urine toxicology testing in emergency room patients.The International journal on drug policy · 2025Article
- Navigating the COVID-19 Risk Environment, Overdose Prevention, and Self Care Practices of People Who Use Illicit Opioids in New York City.Substance use & misuse · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundOverdose deaths in the United States rose substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Disruptions to the drug supply and service provision introduced significant instability into the lives of people who use drugs (PWUD), including volatility in their drug use behaviors.
methodsUsing data from a multistate survey of PWUD, we examined sociodemographic and drug use correlates of volatile drug use during COVID-19 using multivariable linear regression. In a multivariable logistic regression model, we assessed the association between volatile drug use and past month overdose adjusting for sociodemographic and other drug use characteristics.
resultsAmong participants, 52% were male, 50% were white, 29% had less than a high school education, and 25% were experiencing homelessness. Indicators of volatile drug use were prevalent: 53% wanted to use more drugs; 45% used more drugs; 43% reported different triggers for drug use, and 23% used drugs that they did not typically use. 14% experienced a past-month overdose. In adjusted models, hunger (β=0.47, 95% CI: 0.21-0.72), transactional sex (β=0.50, 95% CI: 0.06-0.94), and the number of drugs used (β=0.16, 95% CI: 0.07-0.26) were associated with increased volatile drug use. Volatile drug use was associated with increased overdose risk (aOR=1.42, 95% CI: 1.17-1.71) in the adjusted model.
conclusionsVolatile drug use during the COVID-19 pandemic was common, appeared to be driven by structural vulnerability, and was associated with increased overdose risk. Addressing volatile drug use through interventions that ensure structural stability for PWUD and a safer drug supply is essential for mitigating the ongoing overdose crisis.
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