Adverse Childhood Experiences Predict Early Initiation of Opioid Use Behaviors.

Introduction: Although a substantial body of research documents a relationship between traumatic stress in childhood and the initiation of substance use later in the life course, only limited research has examined potential linkages between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and the initiation of non-medical prescription opioid use and other opioid use behaviors. The present study contributes to this growing body of work by investigating the association of childhood trauma with early initiation of a series of opioid use behaviors. Methods: New York City young adults (n = 539) ages 18-29 who reported non-medical use of prescription opioids or heroin use in the past 30 days were recruited using Respondent-Driven Sampling in 2014-16. Ten ACEs were assessed via self-report with the ACE Questionnaire. Associations between number of ACEs and self-reported ages of initiating seven opioid use behaviors (e.g., non-medical prescription opioid use, heroin use, heroin injection) were estimated with multivariable logistic regression. Results: Eighty nine percent of participants reported at least one ACE, and 46% reported four or more ACEs, a well-supported threshold indicating elevated risk for negative health consequences. Every increase of one trauma was associated with a 12-23% increase in odds of early initiation across the seven opioid use behaviors. Findings also document that the mean age at initiation increased with increasing risk severity across the behaviors, contributing to evidence of a trajectory from opioid pill misuse to opioid injection. Discussion: Increasing number of childhood traumas was associated with increased odds of earlier initiation of multiple opioid misuse behaviors. In light of prior research linking earlier initiation of substance use with increased substance use severity, present findings suggest the importance of ACEs as individual-level determinants of increased opioid use severity. Efforts to prevent onset and escalation of opioid use among at-risk youth may benefit from trauma prevention programs and trauma-focused screening and treatment, as well as increased attention to ameliorating upstream socio-structural drivers of childhood trauma.

Web-Based Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Chronic Pain Patients with Aberrant Drug-Related Behavior: Outcomes from a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: There is high unmet need for effective behavioral treatments for chronic pain patients at risk for or with demonstrated histories of opioid misuse. Despite growing evidence supporting technology-based delivery of self-management interventions for chronic pain, very few such programs target co-occurring chronic pain and aberrant drug-related behavior. This randomized controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of a novel, web-based self-management intervention, grounded in cognitive behavior therapy, for chronic pain patients with aberrant drug-related behavior. Methods: Opioid-treated chronic pain patients at a specialty pain practice who screened positive for aberrant drug-related behavior (N = 110) were randomized to receive treatment as usual plus the web-based program or treatment as usual alone. The primary outcomes of pain severity, pain interference, and aberrant drug-related behavior, and the secondary outcomes of pain catastrophizing and pain-related emergency department visits, were assessed during the 12-week intervention and at one and three months postintervention. Results: Patients assigned to use the web-based program reported significantly greater reductions in aberrant drug-related behavior, pain catastrophizing, and pain-related emergency department visits-but not pain severity or pain interference-relative to those assigned to treatment as usual. The positive outcomes were observed during the 12-week intervention and for three months postintervention. Conclusions: A web-based self-management program, when delivered in conjunction with standard specialty pain treatment, was effective in reducing chronic pain patients' aberrant drug-related behavior, pain catastrophizing, and emergency department visits for pain. Technology-based self-management tools may be a promising therapeutic approach for the vulnerable group of chronic pain patients who have problems managing their opioid medication.

High enhancer, downer, withdrawal helper: Multifunctional nonmedical benzodiazepine use among young adult opioid users in New York City.

BACKGROUND: Benzodiazepines are a widely prescribed psychoactive drug; in the U.S., both medical and nonmedical use of benzodiazepines has increased markedly in the past 15 years. Long-term use can lead to tolerance and dependence, and abrupt withdrawal can cause seizures or other life-threatening symptoms. Benzodiazepines are often used nonmedically in conjunction with other drugs, and with opioids in particular-a combination that can increase the risk for fatal and non-fatal overdose. This mixed-methods study examines nonmedical use of benzodiazepines among young adults in New York City and its relationship with opioid use. METHODS: For qualitative analysis, 46 90-minute semi-structured interviews were conducted with young adult opioid users (ages 18-32). Interviews were transcribed and coded for key themes. For quantitative analysis, 464 young adult opioid users (ages 18-29) were recruited using Respondent-Driven Sampling and completed structured interviews. Benzodiazepine use was assessed via a self-report questionnaire that included measures related to nonmedical benzodiazepine and opioid use. RESULTS: Participants reported using benzodiazepines nonmedically for a wide variety of reasons, including: to increase the high of other drugs; to lessen withdrawal symptoms; and to come down from other drugs. Benzodiazepines were described as readily available and cheap. There was a high prevalence (93%) of nonmedical benzodiazepine use among nonmedical opioid users, with 57% reporting regular nonmedical use. In bivariate analyses, drug-related risk behaviours such as polysubstance use, drug binging, heroin injection and overdose were strongly associated with regular nonmedical benzodiazepine use. In multivariate analysis, growing up in a middle-income household (earning between $51,000 and $100,000 annually), lifetime overdose experience, having ever used cocaine regularly, having ever been prescribed benzodiazepines, recent drug binging, and encouraging fellow drug users to use benzodiazepines to cope with opioid withdrawal were consistently strong predictors of regular nonmedical benzodiazepine use. CONCLUSION: Nonmedical benzodiazepine use may be common among nonmedical opioid users due to its drug-related multi-functionality. Harm reduction messages should account for the multiple functions benzodiazepines serve in a drug-using context, and encourage drug users to tailor their endorsement of benzodiazepines to peers to include safer alternatives.

Sexual Violence in the Context of Drug Use Among Young Adult Opioid Users in New York City.

Drug and alcohol use have been associated with increased risk for sexual violence, but there is little research on sexual violence within the context of drug use among young adult opioid users. The current mixed-methods study explores young adult opioid users' sexual experiences in the context of their drug use. Forty-six New York City young adults (ages 18-32) who reported lifetime nonmedical use of prescription opioids (POs) completed in-depth, semistructured interviews, and 164 (ages 18-29) who reported heroin and/or nonmedical PO use in the past 30 days completed structured assessments that inquired about their drug use and sexual behavior and included questions specific to sexual violence. Participants reported frequent incidents of sexual violence experienced both personally and by their opioid using peers. Participants described sexual violence, including sexual assault, as occurring within a context characterized by victimization of users who were unconscious as a result of substance use, implicit and explicit exchanges of sex for drugs and/or money that increased risk for sexual violence, negative sexual perceptions ascribed to drug users, and participants' own internalized stigma. Recommendations to reduce sexual violence among young adult opioid users include education for users and service providers on the risk of involvement in sexual violence within drug using contexts and efforts to challenge perceptions of acceptability regarding sexual violence.

Patient vs provider reports of aberrant medication-taking behavior among opioid-treated patients with chronic pain who report misusing opioid medication.

During long-term opioid therapy for chronic noncancer pain, monitoring medication adherence of patients with a history of aberrant opioid medication-taking behaviors (AMTB) is an essential practice. There is limited research, however, into the concordance among existing monitoring tools of self-report, physician report, and biofluid screening. This study examined associations among patient and provider assessments of AMTB and urine drug screening using data from a randomized trial of a cognitive-behavioral intervention designed to improve medication adherence and pain-related outcomes among 110 opioid-treated patients with chronic pain who screened positive for AMTB and were enrolled in a pain program. Providers completed the Aberrant Behavior Checklist (ABC) and patients completed the Current Opioid Misuse Measure (COMM) and the Chemical Coping Inventory (CCI). In multivariate analyses, ABC scores were compared with COMM and CCI scores, while controlling for demographics and established risk factors for AMTB, such as pain severity. Based on clinical cutoffs, 84% of patients reported clinically significant levels of AMTB and providers rated 36% of patients at elevated levels. Provider reports of AMTB were not correlated with COMM or CCI scores. However, the ABC ratings of experienced providers (nurse practitioners/attending physicians) were higher than those of less experienced providers (fellows) and were correlated with CCI scores and risk factors for AMTB. Associations between patient- and provider-reported AMTB and urine drug screening results were low and largely nonsignificant. In conclusion, concordance between patient and provider reports of AMTB among patients with chronic pain prescribed opioid medication varied by provider level of training.

Comparative Effectiveness of Web-Based vs. Educator-Delivered HIV Prevention for Adolescent Substance Users: A Randomized, Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Young people who engage in substance use are at risk for becoming infected with HIV and diseases with similar transmission dynamics. Effective disease prevention programs delivered by prevention specialists exist but are rarely provided in systems of care due to staffing/resource constraints and operational barriers-and are thus of limited reach. Web-based prevention interventions could possibly offer an effective alternative to prevention specialist-delivered interventions and may enable widespread, cost-effective access to evidence-based prevention programming. Previous research has shown the HIV/disease prevention program within the Web-based therapeutic education system (TES) to be an effective adjunct to a prevention specialist-delivered intervention. The present study was the first randomized, clinical trial to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of this Web-based intervention as a standalone intervention relative to a traditional, prevention specialist-delivered intervention. METHODS: Adolescents entering outpatient treatment for substance use participated in this multi-site trial. Participants were randomly assigned to either a traditional intervention delivered by a prevention specialist (n=72) or the Web-delivered TES intervention (n=69). Intervention effectiveness was assessed by evaluating changes in participants' knowledge about HIV, hepatitis, and sexually transmitted infections, intentions to engage in safer sex, sex-related risk behavior, self-efficacy to use condoms, and condom use skills. FINDINGS: Participants in the TES intervention achieved significant and comparable increases in HIV/disease-related knowledge, condom use self-efficacy, and condom use skills and comparable decreases in HIV risk behavior relative to participants who received the intervention delivered by a prevention specialist. Participants rated TES as easier to understand. CONCLUSION: This study indicates that TES is as effective as HIV/disease prevention delivered by a prevention specialist. Because technology-based interventions such as TES have high fidelity, are inexpensive and scalable, and can be implemented in a wide variety of settings, they have the potential to greatly increase access to effective prevention programming.