Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2016 Jul 11;11(1):23.
doi: 10.1186/s13011-016-0066-1.

Type of opioid dependence among patients seeking opioid substitution treatment: are there differences in background and severity of problems?

Bodil Monwell  1   2   3 , Per Bülow  4   5 , Arne Gerdner  4
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Type of opioid dependence among patients seeking opioid substitution treatment: are there differences in background and severity of problems?

Bodil Monwell et al. Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. .

Abstract

Background: The study explores differences and similarities in background and problem severity among those seeking Opioid Substitution Treatment (OST), comparing those who primarily had misused "opiates", e.g. heroin, morphine and opium, with those who primarily had misused other opioids.

Methods: Patients (n = 127) assessed for possible admittance in OST are compared based on the Addiction Severity Index. Two groups based on primary type of opioid misused are compared (opiates vs. other opioids).

Results: In the global severity ratings there were no significant differences between the groups other than tautological artefacts concerning heroin. There were few specific differences between the groups. The opiate group more often had Hepatitis C and more often had legal problems related to financing their misuse. Injection of drugs was the main method of administration in both groups, i.e. 90 % for mostly opiates vs. 75 % for mostly other opioids. A great majority in both groups, 96 % vs. 91 %, had misused most other types of drugs. Both groups were found to have severe problems in all areas investigated.

Conclusions: The study demonstrates great similarities in problem severity among those seeking OST, both those who primarily had misused opiates and those who primarily had misused other opioids.

Keywords: Opiates; Opioid Substitution Treatment; Opioid-related disorders; Opioids.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Cami J, Farré M. Drug addiction. N Engl J Med. 2003;349(10):975–86. doi: 10.1056/NEJMra023160. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Panel NC. Effective medical treatment of opiate addiction. National consensus development panel on effective medical treatment of opiate addiction. JAMA. 1998;280:1936–43. doi: 10.1001/jama.280.22.1936. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Grönbladh L, Öhlund LS, Gunne LM. Mortality in heroin addiction: impact of methadone treatment. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 1990;82(3):223–7. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1990.tb03057.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Kakko KJ, Eliasson L. Heroinberoende. Stockholm: Liber; 2011.
    1. UNODC . World drug report. Luxemburg: Publications Office of the European Union; 2012.

Publication types