Investigating and addressing the immediate and long-term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients with substance use disorders: a scoping review and evidence map protocol

IntroductionThe COVID-19 pandemic has driven unprecedented social and economic reform in efforts to curb the impact of disease. Governments worldwide have legislated non-essential service shutdowns and adapted essential service provision in order to minimise face-to-face contact. We anticipate major consequences resulting from such policies, with marginalised populations expected to bear the greatest burden of such measures, especially those with substance use disorders (SUDs).Methods and analysisWe aim to conduct (1) a scoping review to summarise the available evidence evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients with SUDs, and (2) an evidence map to visually plot and categorise the current available evidence evaluating the impact of COVID-19 on patients with SUDs to identify gaps in addressing high-risk populations.Ethics and disseminationEthics approval is not required for this scoping review as we plan to review publicly available data. This is part of a multistep project, whereby we intend to use the findings generated from this review in combination with data from an ongoing prospective cohort study our team is leading, encompassing over 2000 patients with SUDs receiving medication-assisted therapy in Ontario prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Identifying patient-important outcomes for treatment of bipolar disorder: a systematic review protocol

IntroductionTreatment of bipolar disorder is the focus of several clinical trials, however the understanding of the outcomes for establishing treatment effectiveness within these trials is limited. Further, there is limited literature which reports on the outcomes considered to be important to patients, indicating that patient perspectives are often not considered when selecting outcomes of effectiveness within trials. This protocol describes a systematic review which aims to describe the outcomes being used within trials to measure treatment effectiveness, commenting on the inclusion of patient-important outcomes within previous trials.Methods and analysisThis protocol is reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses Protocols statement. OVID MEDLINE, OVID Embase, OVID APA PsycINFO, Web of Science, the Wiley Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrials.gov and the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform databases will be searched for eligible studies. Screening, full-text and data extraction stages will be completed in duplicate using the Covidence platform for systematic reviews. Eligible studies will include clinical trials of interventions in bipolar disorder, in order to identify outcomes used to assess treatment effectiveness, and qualitative studies, to determine which outcomes have been reported as important by patients. Risk of bias for included studies will be assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool for randomised controlled trials, and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for observational research.Ethics and disseminationThis review will involve dissemination to key stakeholders, including primary end users such as patients, clinicians and trialists. Knowledge translation tools will be generated to share the relevant conclusions of this review. Results will be communicated to the scientific community through peer-reviewed publications, conferences and workshops. No ethics approval will be sought as this study is based on literature.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42021214435.

Delirium and other neuropsychiatric manifestations of COVID-19 infection in people with preexisting psychiatric disorders: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Psychiatric disorders increase risk of neuropsychiatric disease and poor outcomes, yet little is known about the neuropsychiatric manifestations of COVID-19 in the psychiatric population. The primary objective is to synthesize neuropsychiatric outcomes of COVID-19 in people with preexisting psychiatric disorders. METHODS: Data were collected during an ongoing review of the impact of pandemics on people with existing psychiatric disorders. All study designs and gray literature were included. Medline, PsychInfo, CINAHL, EMBASE, and MedRx were searched from inception to September 1 2020. Risk of bias was assessed using a published tool that can accommodate all study types. Two independent authors screened the studies and extracted data. Data were narratively synthesized, as there were insufficient data to meta-analyze. Evidence was appraised according to GRADE. RESULTS: Four case reports were included, comprising 13 participants from three countries. Many large-sample, relevant papers were omitted for not reporting psychiatric history, despite reporting other comorbidities. Included participants (n = 13) were hospitalized with COVID-19 and appeared to meet criteria for delirium. Myoclonus, rigidity, and alogia were also reported. The most commonly reported preexisting psychiatric diagnoses were mood disorders, schizophrenia, and alcohol use disorder. CONCLUSIONS: People with preexisting psychiatric disorders may experience delirium, rigidity, myoclonus, and alogia during COVID-19 infection; although higher quality and longitudinal data are needed to better understand these phenomena. Relevant COVID-19 literature does not always report psychiatric history, despite heightened neuropsychiatric vulnerability within this population. TRIAL REGISTRATION:  PROSPERO (CRD42020179611).

Factors Associated With Increased Opioid Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Prospective Study of Patients Enrolled in Opioid Agonist Treatment.

OBJECTIVES: The opioid use disorder (OUD) crisis in North America has become "an epidemic within a pandemic" in the context of the COVID-19 virus. We aimed to explore the association between the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in opioid use patterns among patients receiving treatment for OUD. METHODS: We used prospectively collected data from 456 patients attending 31 opioid agonist clinics across Ontario, Canada. All included participants underwent routine urine drug screens (UDSs) both before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. A paired sample t -test was used to compare the proportion of opioid-positive UDSs collected pre- and post-pandemic, and linear regression analysis was used to explore factors associated with this change. RESULTS: Participants had a mean age of 39.9 years (standard deviation = 10.9), 52%were male, and 81%were receivingmethadone treatment. The percentage of opioid-positive UDSs increased significantly during the pandemic, on average by 10.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 8.17, 12.95, P < 0.001). Continued opioid use before the pandemic was associated with 9.43% increase, on average, in the percentage of opioid-positive UDSs during the pandemic (95% CI 3.79, 15.07). Self-reported past-month cocaine (adjusted betacoefficient 6.83, 95% CI 0.92, 12.73) and amphetamine (adjusted beta-coefficient 13.13, 95% CI 5.15, 21.1) use at study entry were also associated with increases in opioid-positive UDSs. CONCLUSIONS: Increased opioid use is one measure of the negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on individuals with OUD, an already marginalized population. Understanding factors associated with worse outcomes is essential to ensuring that treatment programs appropriately adapt to better serve this population during the pandemic.

GWAS-identified genetic variants associated with medication-assisted treatment outcomes in patients with opioid use disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.

BACKGROUND: The burden of opioid use disorder (OUD) has been increasing in North America. Administration of medication-assisted treatments (MATs) for OUD on an individual-dose basis has been shown to affect patient responses to treatment, proving to be, on occasion, dangerous. A genetic basis has been identified for some MAT responses in a candidate gene context, but consensus has not been reached for any genome-wide significant associations. This systematic review aims to identify and assess any genetic variants associated with MAT patient outcomes at genome-wide significance. METHODS: The databases searched by the authors will be: MEDLINE, Web of Science, EMBASE, CINAHL and Pre-CINAHL, GWAS Catalog, GWAS Central, and NIH Database of Genotypes and Phenotypes. A title and abstract screening, full-text screening, data extraction, and quality assessment will be completed in duplicate for each study via Covidence. Treatment outcomes of interest include continued opioid use or abstinence during treatment or at follow-up, time to relapse, treatment retention rates, opioid overdose, other substance use, comorbid psychiatric disorders, risk taking behaviors, MAT plasma concentrations, and mortality rates. Analysis methods applied, if appropriate, will include random effects meta-analysis with pooled odds ratios for all outcomes. Subgroup analyses will also be implemented, when possible. DISCUSSION: This systematic review can hopefully inform the direction of future research, aiding in the development of a safer and more patient-centered treatment. It will be able to highlight genome-wide significant variants that are replicable and associated with MAT patient outcomes. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: This systematic review protocol has been registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (registration ID CRD42020169121).

Impact of COVID-19 and other pandemics and epidemics on people with pre-existing mental disorders: a systematic review protocol and suggestions for clinical care.

INTRODUCTION: The current COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in high rates of infection and death, as well as widespread social disruption and a reduction in access to healthcare services and support. There is growing concern over how the pandemic, as well as measures put in place to curb the pandemic, will impact people with mental disorders. We aim to study the effect of pandemics and epidemics on mental health outcomes for people with premorbid mental disorders. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: With our predefined search strategy, we will search five databases for studies reporting on mental health outcomes in people with pre-existing mental disorders during pandemic and epidemic settings. Search dates are planned as follows: 5 May 2020 and 23 July 2020. The following databases will be searched: MEDLINE/PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, MedRxiv and EMBASE. Data will be screened and extracted in duplicate by two independent reviewers. Studies involving non-clinical populations or patients diagnosed with a mental disorder during a pandemic/epidemic will be excluded. We will include data collected from all pandemics and epidemics throughout history, including the present COVID-19 pandemic. If possible, study findings will be combined in meta-analyses, and subgroup analyses will be performed. We hope that this review will shed light on the impact of pandemics and epidemics on those with pre-existing mental disorders. Knowledge generated may inform future intervention studies as well as healthcare policies. Given the potential implications of the current pandemic measures (ie, disruption of healthcare services) on mental health, we will also compile a list of existing mental health resources. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: No ethical approval is required for this protocol and proposed systematic review as we will only use data from previously published papers that have themselves received ethics clearance and used proper informed consent procedures. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration number: CRD42020179611.