Association of Methadone Treatment With Substance-Related Hospital Admissions Among a Population in Canada With a History of Criminal Convictions

Abstract

Key Points Question Is adherence to methadone associated with a lower risk of hospital admission among individuals with criminal convictions? Findings In this cohort study including 11 401 Canadian individuals, periods during which methadone was dispensed were associated with lower rates of any acute hospital admission. Meaning Adherence to methadone among individuals with criminal convictions may contribute to lower rates of acute hospitalization.

Barriers to Medications for Opioid Use Disorder Among Veterans Involved in the Legal System: a Qualitative Study

“…2,3 Populations involved in the criminal legal system (e.g., in prison, in jail, on parole, on probation, in a specialty court, or formerly incarcerated) also benefit from MOUD, with evidence of reduced opioid use, hospital admissions, incarceration, arrests, and violent and non-violent offenses. [4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Among people exiting prison, MOUD reduces reincarceration risk 11 and is cost-effective. 12 Despite evidence on its effectiveness, veterans exiting prison have lower utilization rates of MOUD at Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facilities than veterans not involved in the legal system.…”

Benefits people experiencing opioid use disorder derive from opioid agonist therapies

“…There is clear evidence supporting a correlation between Canada's first line OAT agents, MMT and BUP, and improved mental health. The study by Russolillo et al (2019) demonstrates that there is a substantial risk reduction for mental health related hospitalization associated with MMT therapy. Russolillo et al (2019) also demonstrated that the benefit of MMT was dose dependent.…”

“…The study by Russolillo et al (2019) demonstrates that there is a substantial risk reduction for mental health related hospitalization associated with MMT therapy. Russolillo et al (2019) also demonstrated that the benefit of MMT was dose dependent. As with physical health improvements, Russolillo et al…”

“…In summary, there is evidence of improved non-opioid related objective health outcomes associated with both MMT and BUP, and evidence showing BUP therapy improves patients' perceptions of their physical health. The only evidence suggesting MMT improved perceptions of physical health was from commentary in a low-quality qualitative paper, however it was also the only paper identified which assessed this outcome, and the findings of Russolillo et al (2019) suggest a perceived benefit is likely.…”

“…This is unsurprising given the relative novelty of SROM and iOAT as therapeutic avenues. Data supporting MMT across all themes was predominantly objective in nature, with only Hill et al (2015) cursorily examining patient perspectives (Evans et al, 2019;Russolillo et al, 2018;Russolillo et al, 2019). Conversely, there was a plethora of studies evaluating both the objective and patient perceived benefits associated with BUP (Evans et al, 2019;Hill et al, 2015;Hoffman et al, 2017;Ling et al, 2021;Lintzeris et al, 2021;Monico et al, 2018;Samples et al, 2020;Scott et al, 2017;Streck et al, 2018).…”