SAFE Coalition: Meds Reduce Risk of Death After Opioid Overdose

According to recent research conducted by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), three medications approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have been shown to reduce opioid use and its health consequences.shown to reduce opioid use and its health consequences.

In 2016, more than 42,000 people died from an opioid overdose and presently the Nation still remains in the grip of an opioid crisis. The monthly rate of opioid overdoses has continued to rise caused by either prescription opioids or their illegal counterparts, such as heroin. Not all opioid overdoses are fatal. But people who experience a non-fatal overdose are at increased risk of a later fatal overdose.

Three drugs; methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone have been shown to reduce opioid use and its health consequences. But whether they can reduce the risk of death after a non-fatal opioid overdose hasn’t been clear.

Research funded by NIDA at the Boston University School of Medicine examined this question using hospital and death records in Massachusetts from 2012 to 2014. They tracked the treatment of more than 17,000 adults who had a nonfatal overdose during that period.

In the year after a non-fatal overdose, 807 study participants died of any cause. Of those, 368 died of an opioid overdose. Less than a third of participants were prescribed one or more medications to treat opioid use disorder after their overdose. Only 11% received methadone, 17% received buprenorphine, and 6% received naltrexone. The median duration of treatment for all three drugs was less than six months.

During treatment with methadone, people were 59% less likely to die of an opioid overdose than people who didn’t receive medication for opioid-use disorder. People who received buprenorphine were 38% less likely to die of an opioid overdose during the same time period. No association was seen between naltrexone use and risk of death. However, this might be because of the small number of people who were prescribed naltrexone.

The results also showed that guidelines about prescription opioid use are often not followed. In the year after a non-fatal overdose, 34% of participants received a new prescription for opioid painkillers. In addition, 26% percent received a prescription for benzodiazepines, which increase the risk of an overdose if taken with opioids.

Overall results of this study indicated the underutilization of effective treatment strategies. NIDA is committed to conveying this message.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse is a United States federal-government research institute whose mission is to "lead the Nation in bringing the power of science to bear on drug abuse and addiction.” For more information please visit www.drugabuse.gov.

The SAFE Glen Cove Coalition is conducting an opioid prevention awareness campaign entitled "Keeping Glen Cove SAFE" to educate and update the community regarding opioid use and its consequences. To learn more about the SAFE Glen Cove Coalition please follow us on www.facebook.com/safeglencovecoalition or visit SAFE’s website to learn more about the Opioid Epidemic at www.safeglencove.org.