Articles: opioid.
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J Subst Abuse Treat · Jan 2015
Denial of urinalysis-confirmed opioid use in prescription opioid dependence.
Although research has generally supported the validity of substance use self-reports, some patients deny urine-verified substance use. We examined the prevalence and patterns of denying urinalysis-confirmed opioid use in a sample of prescription opioid dependent patients. We also identified characteristics associated with denial in this population of increasing public health concern. ⋯ Overall, 22.9% of opioid-positive urine tests (149/650) were denied on self-report. Multivariable analysis found that initially using opioids to relieve pain was associated with denying opioid use. These findings support the use of both self-reports and urine testing in treating prescription opioid dependence.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jan 2015
Why people accept opioids: role of general attitudes toward drugs, experience as a bereaved family, information from medical professionals, and personal beliefs regarding a good death.
Many surveys have evaluated patient-related barriers to pain management. ⋯ More than 90% of bereaved families whose relatives were treated with opioid analgesics reported a preference to receive opioid analgesics for the treatment of cancer pain, if necessary, in the future.
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One approach to reduce fatal opioid overdose is by distributing naloxone to law enforcement officers. While several cities have implemented these naloxone programs, little research has investigated officer attitudes about their training. The present research attempts to fill this gap by analyzing survey data from police officers following intranasal naloxone training. ⋯ Distributing naloxone to police officers is likely a trend that will continue so it is important to understand how police officers respond to training to assure that future trainings are as effective as possible. Further research is needed to investigate the impact that these programs have on the community.
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Italian Road Law limits driving while undergoing treatment with certain kinds of medication. Here, we report the results of a test, run as a smartphone application (app), assessing auditory and visual reflexes in a sample of 300 drivers. The scope of the test is to provide both the police force and medication-taking drivers with a tool that can evaluate the individual's capacity to drive safely. ⋯ We developed and fine-tuned a test called Safedrive that measures visual and auditory reaction times through a smartphone mobile device; the scope of the test is two-fold: to provide a clinical tool for the assessment of the driving capacity of individuals taking pain relief medication; to promote the sense of social responsibility in drivers who are on medication and provide these individuals with a means of testing their own capacity to drive safely.
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Journal of pain research · Jan 2015
A multicenter, primary care-based, open-label study to identify behaviors related to prescription opioid misuse, abuse, and diversion in opioid-experienced patients with chronic moderate-to-severe pain.
To compare the investigator assessment of patient risk for prescription opioid misuse, abuse, and diversion with patient self-reports of these activities in a population with chronic pain. ⋯ More research is needed to better understand the gap between the investigator assessment of potential risk for misuse, abuse, and diversion and the actual extent of these behaviors among patients with chronic pain.