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. 2019 Jul:102:33-39.
doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2019.04.009. Epub 2019 May 2.

Influence of social determinants of health and substance use characteristics on persons who use drugs pursuit of care for hepatitis C virus infection

Narissa Williams  1 , Nicholas Bossert  1 , Yang Chen  2 , Urmo Jaanimägi  1 , Marianthi Markatou  3 , Andrew H Talal  4
Affiliations

Influence of social determinants of health and substance use characteristics on persons who use drugs pursuit of care for hepatitis C virus infection

Narissa Williams et al. J Subst Abuse Treat. 2019 Jul.

Abstract

Background: Social determinants of health (SDOH), i.e., social, behavioral and environmental factors, are increasingly recognized for their important influence on health outcomes. Data are limited on the influence of SDOH, substance use characteristics, and their interactions on pursuit of hepatitis C virus (HCV) care among individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD). Linkage to HCV care remains low in this population despite high HCV prevalence and incidence.

Aims: To investigate the influence of SDOH, substance use factors, and their interactions on HCV treatment uptake among OUD patients in a methadone treatment program.

Methods: Information on patient demographics, SDOH, substance use characteristics, and co-morbid medical conditions were obtained from the paper and electronic medical records of OUD patients on methadone. We applied multiple correspondence analysis, k-means algorithm, and logistic regression with least absolute shrinkage and selection operator penalty to identify variables and clusters associated with pursuit of HCV care.

Results: Data from 161 patients (57% male, 60% Caucasian, mean age 45 years) were evaluated. Being employed, the absence of support systems, and a history of foster care were the strongest positive predictors of treatment pursuit. The use of crack/cocaine as the initial illicit substance, criminal activity without incarceration, and the absence of a family history of chemical dependency were the strongest negative predictors. We identified clusters among persons with OUD based upon their likelihood to pursue HCV management.

Conclusion: Utilizing data from the medical record, we were able to identify factors positively and negatively associated with linkage-to-care for HCV. We were also able to divide patients into clusters of factors associated with linkage-to-care for HCV. These results could be used to identify individuals with OUD based upon their readiness for HCV care.

Keywords: Communicable diseases; Hepatitis; Social determinants of health; Substance-related disorders; Therapeutics; Treatment adherence and compliance.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations of Interest: None

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Plot of individuals and categories of social determinant and substance use variables. Individuals are plotted using different colors and shapes according to the clusters obtained by the K-means algorithm applied on the first two principal dimensions of social determinant and substance use variables.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Directionality and strength of social and substance use variable influence on linkage-to-care. The sixth principal dimension provides a continuous variable expressed as a linear combination of the categories illustrated. Categories with positive direction increase the likelihood of pursuit of hepatitis C virus (HCV) care, whereas those with negative direction decease the likelihood of pursuing an evaluation. Abbreviations: high school general educational development diploma equivalency, GED; vocational training, VOC
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