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. 2021 May 3;4(5):e2112865.
doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.12865.

Measuring the Burden of Opioid-Related Mortality in Ontario, Canada, During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tara Gomes  1   2 , Sophie A Kitchen  1 , Regan Murray  3
Affiliations

Measuring the Burden of Opioid-Related Mortality in Ontario, Canada, During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tara Gomes et al. JAMA Netw Open. .

Abstract

This cross-sectional study quantifies the added burden of fatal opioid overdoses during the first 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Dr Gomes reported receiving grants from the Ontario Ministry of Health outside the submitted work. No other disclosures were reported.

Figures

Figure.
Figure.. Time Series of Opioid-Related Deaths by Age Group, Ontario, Canada, January 2018 to September 2020
The vertical orange line indicates the start of period 1; vertical blue line, the start of period 2; vertical red line, the start of the COVID-19 period.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Government of Canada . Opioid and stimulant-related harms in Canada. Published March 2021. Accessed April 14, 2021. https://health-infobase.canada.ca/substance-related-harms/opioids-stimul...
    1. Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction . Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on substance use treatment capacity in Canada. Accessed February 11, 2021. https://www.ccsa.ca/sites/default/files/2020-12/CCSA-COVID-19-Impacts-Pa...
    1. Ontario Drug Policy Research Network; Office of the Chief Coroner for Ontario/Ontario Forensic Pathology Service; Public Health Ontario; Centre on Drug Policy Evaluation . Preliminary patterns in circumstances surrounding opioid-related deaths in Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic. Published November 2020. Accessed April 14, 2021. https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/33326/1/Opioid-Death-Report_FINAL-2020NOV...
    1. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . Overdose deaths accelerating during COVID-19. Published December 17, 2020. Accessed January 18, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2020/p1218-overdose-deaths-covid-19.html
    1. Department of Information Evidence and Research . WHO methods and data sources for global burden of disease estimates 2000-2015. Published January 2017. Accessed April 14, 2021. https://www.who.int/healthinfo/global_burden_disease/GlobalDALYmethods_2...

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