Drug and alcohol dependence最新文献

{"title":"Words matter: Stigmatizing language in medical records of individuals electing medication for opioid use disorder","authors":"Matthew Perez ,&nbsp;Elise N. Marino ,&nbsp;Curtis Bone ,&nbsp;Tara Karns-Wright ,&nbsp;Jennifer S. Potter","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112831","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112831","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>There has been a concerted effort to minimize the use of stigmatizing language in healthcare settings; however, its prevalence in health record documentation remains high. This study examined clinicians’ stigmatizing and patients’ self-stigmatizing language in medical records for patients electing medication for opioid use disorder in two settings, office-based opioid treatment and opioid treatment programs.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>In this retrospective cohort study, data were extracted from health records for a distributed provider network serving publicly funded patients in Texas. Patients seeking medication treatment for opioid use disorder between December 2020 and November 2021 were included. Using a natural language processing algorithm to review open text fields in the health records, we identified the prevalence of stigmatizing language identified in the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s “Words Matter” tool.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The analytic sample included 1391 patients (63.8 % White, 27.5 % Hispanic, 40.5 % female, M_age= 40.8 years [SD=10.3]). Of the 6099 notes analyzed, 81.1 % (n = 4944) contained stigmatizing language and 7.1 % (n = 430) contained self-stigmatizing language. In multivariate models, stigmatizing language was associated with age, race, rurality, education, income, opioid use, and treatment setting. Self-stigmatizing language was associated with treatment setting.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Findings suggest that a patient’s sociodemographic background influences the stigmatizing language their clinicians use while treatment setting influences both provider and self-stigmatizing language. Additional research is needed to explore whether differences in stigmatizing language contributes to differential treatment outcomes seen in different opioid treatment settings<strong>.</strong></div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112831"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144851890","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Cause of head injury and between- and within-individual changes in impulsivity and binge drinking","authors":"Eric J. Connolly ,&nbsp;Meghan L. Royle ,&nbsp;Leila Wood ,&nbsp;Anne C. Wingert ,&nbsp;Jeff R. Temple","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112836","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112836","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Head injury (HI) is a serious public health concern related to a wide range of medical and neurobehavioral consequences, including the worsening of adolescent psychopathology and unhealthy substance use. Little is known, however, about whether causes of HI are uniquely related to between-individual differences in impulsivity and binge drinking during emerging adulthood - a life-course period characterized by risk taking behavior and substance use experimentation.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Data from an ethnically diverse longitudinal sample of Texas youth (<em>N</em> = 741) are analyzed to evaluate the association between self-reported cause of HI and between-individual stability in impulsivity and binge drinking, as well as within-individual changes in impulsivity and binge drinking. Random intercept cross-lagged panel models are fitted to the data.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Participants with a history of HI due to being hit by an object or sports participation report higher between-individual stability in impulsivity, while participants with a history of HI due to physical violence demonstrate higher between-individual stability in binge drinking. Within-individual increases in impulsivity are associated with subsequent within-individual increases in binge drinking, but binge drinking is not associated with any changes in impulsivity.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Contextual information about youth behaviors that contribute to HI can inform the development of prevention and intervention programs – especially as they relate to impulsivity and binge drinking.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112836"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144831022","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring disparities in overdose fatalities and naloxone administration","authors":"Laura L. Lightfoot,&nbsp;Charles M. Katz","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112834","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112834","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Drug overdose remains a persistent public health crisis in the United States, with rising fatalities disproportionately affecting racial and ethnic minority communities. This study examines racial disparities in naloxone administration among drug overdose fatalities in Arizona from 2019 to 2023.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Data were drawn from the CDC’s Arizona State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System (AZ-SUDORS), which compiles information from death certificates, medical examiner reports, and postmortem toxicology. Multivariable logistic regression models with multiple imputation were used to estimate the odds of naloxone administration across racial and ethnic groups, adjusting for demographic and contextual covariates. Interaction terms between race and stimulant involvement were included to assess differential patterns.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Across 10,135 overdose deaths, opioids were detected in 76.9 % of cases, and naloxone was administered in 26.1 %. Hispanic and American Indian decedents were more likely to receive naloxone compared to non-Hispanic white decedents. Black decedents were also more likely to receive naloxone in the initial model, but this difference was no longer significant after accounting for stimulant involvement. A significant interaction revealed that Black decedents were more likely to receive naloxone in cases where stimulants were not involved, compared to stimulant-involved deaths. Naloxone administration was less likely among older and unhoused individuals and more likely among those with lower educational attainment.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Findings point to racial disparities in emergency overdose response and the moderating role of stimulant involvement. Public health strategies should address how drug combinations and racialized patterns of overdose shape naloxone access in order to ensure more equitable responses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112834"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144831021","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pilot randomized controlled trial of a tailored personalized normative feedback intervention for college student alcohol use","authors":"Amanda K. Gilmore ,&nbsp;Ruschelle M. Leone ,&nbsp;Katherine Reuben ,&nbsp;Jamani B. Garner ,&nbsp;Nyla Flowers ,&nbsp;Tristin Chipman ,&nbsp;Emily E. Patton ,&nbsp;Julianna Capobianco ,&nbsp;Zoe Y. Zong ,&nbsp;Cynthia A. Stappenbeck ,&nbsp;Jessalynn R. Ellis ,&nbsp;Kennicia Fortson ,&nbsp;K. Nicole Mullican ,&nbsp;Mary Larimer","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112824","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112824","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Purpose</h3><div>Heavy drinking is common on college campuses, and personalized normative feedback interventions (PFI) are commonly implemented to reduce heavy drinking behaviors. The current study tested the preliminary efficacy of a web-based PFI intervention, Web-BASICS (Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students), tailored for participant selection of their normative peer group to reduce descriptive drinking norms and alcohol use compared to a control condition.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>College students (<em>N</em> = 248) were recruited to participate in a study on alcohol use. Participants were randomized to receive Tailored Web-BASICS or a control condition and were asked to complete a survey at baseline and three months post-intervention.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Most participants (77 %; <em>n</em> = 97) assigned to receive Tailored Web-BASICS chose to have normative feedback tailored by race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and university. Descriptive drinking norms mediated the effect of Tailored Web-BASICS on alcohol use. Those assigned to Tailored Web-BASICS had reductions in descriptive drinking norms, thereby reducing alcohol use at three months post-intervention relative to control.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Tailored Web-BASICS may be a useful strategy to reduce alcohol use for all college students, irrespective of identity. Future research is needed to assess the efficacy of this approach in a large randomized controlled trial.</div></div><div><h3>Clinical trial.gov registration</h3><div>NCT06776796</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112824"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144864575","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"How soon should alternative smoking cessation treatments be offered after incomplete response to nicotine replacement therapy?","authors":"Scott Veldhuizen ,&nbsp;Saron Yohannes ,&nbsp;Victor Tang ,&nbsp;Peter Selby ,&nbsp;Laurie Zawertailo","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112823","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112823","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Several effective interventions exist for tobacco dependence. These operate via different mechanisms, making treatment sequencing an important clinical option. As total time in treatment is often short, determining the length of each trial is crucial. In this analysis, we examine how cessation probability varies with time in treatment in a large program providing nicotine replacement therapy (NRT).</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We used data on 87,952 people enrolled in the Smoking Treatment for Ontario Patients (STOP) program between 2014 and 2024. We fit a log-logistic interval-censored survival model to examine cessation probability as a function of time in treatment. We adjusted for sociodemographic and clinical variables and included willingness to set a quit date as an ancillary parameter. We used multiple imputation to include cases with missing baseline variables.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The predicted probability of cessation was 15.5 % for the first week, 9.4 % for the second, and decreased to 3 % per week by 12 weeks. People who had set a quit date were markedly more likely to quit soon after initiation, but the general pattern of decreasing probability of full response was present for all participants.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>People receiving NRT are most likely to quit very early in their course of treatment, and become unlikely to do so after several weeks without full response. Given the limited length of most courses of care, this implies that an offer of alternative interventions, if available, might best be made after a relatively short trial of NRT.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112823"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144831026","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Time from waking to first cigarette, accelerated biological aging, and risk of premature mortality","authors":"Haoxiang Liu ,&nbsp;Bingxin Shang ,&nbsp;Yuxin Yao ,&nbsp;Shiyu Yang ,&nbsp;Xin Fan ,&nbsp;Xin Lin ,&nbsp;Yujia Xie ,&nbsp;Haoyu Yin ,&nbsp;Xiaojie You ,&nbsp;Fuye Li ,&nbsp;Jixuan Ma","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112825","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112825","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>The relationship between the time from waking to first cigarette (TWFC) and premature mortality remains unclear. This study aims to assess the association between TWFC and the risk of premature mortality, and to explore the role of accelerated biological aging in this relationship.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A total of 309,308 participants from the UK Biobank were included in this study. We used the Klemera-Doubal method biological age (KDM-BA) and the phenotypic age (PhenoAge) algorithms to assess accelerated biological aging. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was performed to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95 % confidence interval (CI) of premature mortality with TWFC.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>During a median follow-up of 12.85 years, 14,725 premature deaths were identified. We observed that the shorter TWFC was associated with a higher risk of premature mortality (<em>P</em> trend &lt; 0.001). Compared with subjects who never smoked, the adjusted HR (95 % CI) of premature mortality was 2.54 (2.28, 2.84) among subjects with TWFC &lt; 5<!--> <!-->min. Similarly, participants whose TWFC &lt; 5<!--> <!-->min had 8.955 (95 % CI, 8.951–8.958) months less time to premature death than those who never smoked at 12 years of follow-up. Moreover, accelerated biological aging partially mediated 10.35 %-24.57 % of the relationships between TWFC and risk of premature mortality.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>A shorter TWFC is associated with an increased risk of premature mortality, and the association may be mediated by accelerated biological aging.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112825"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144831024","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Amputation trends among people who use drugs in the context of Philadelphia’s increasingly xylazine adulterated drug supply","authors":"Rose Laurano ,&nbsp;Monika Pogorzelska-Maziarz ,&nbsp;Traci C. Green ,&nbsp;Sara Beachy ,&nbsp;Kristin L. Rising ,&nbsp;Jeffrey K. Hom ,&nbsp;Megan K. Reed","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112826","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112826","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Xylazine-adulterated fentanyl has rapidly spread across the United States and has been increasingly detected in overdose deaths in Philadelphia, PA through medical examiner reports, clinical testing, and widescale drug checking. Xylazine use has been associated with wounds which may lead to amputation, but the extent of this outcome has not been explored.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Utilizing the 10th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) codes, we conducted a de-identified retrospective analysis of data for patients identified with opioid related disorders (ICD-10 code F11) admitted to four different hospitals in Philadelphia, PA between 2018 and 2023. Exposure to xylazine use and active substance use among the sample was not confirmed. Year as proxy for xylazine adulteration was examined for association with amputation using multivariable logistic regression. Demographics, diabetes, number of visits and leaving before treatment completion were examined as factors associated with amputation.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>There were 20,595 acute care visits among 12,047 unique patients with an F11 diagnosis. Among patients, 211 received ≤ 1 amputations across 277 visits. The incidence of amputations increased from 0.81 % in 2018 to 1.55 % in 2023. The adjusted odds of receiving an amputation were 2.08 greater in 2022–2023 than 2018–2019 (OR 2.18, 95 % CI [1.51, 314], p &lt; 0.001; AOR 2:08, 95 % CI [1.43, 3.01], p &lt; 0.001).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>The odds of receiving an amputation among individuals with an ICD-10 F11 code rose alongside increased presence of xylazine in the drug supply. As xylazine continues to spread throughout the United States, health providers need more information to better address risk factors for amputation and develop protocols to decrease incidence of PWUO leaving before treatment completion.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112826"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144842307","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Oral microbial profiles in young adults with cannabis use disorder","authors":"Brittney D. Browning ,&nbsp;Rachel L. Tomko ,&nbsp;Anna E. Kirkland ,&nbsp;Rachel Visontay ,&nbsp;Pamela L. Ferguson ,&nbsp;Alexander V. Alekseyenko ,&nbsp;Melinda A. Engevik ,&nbsp;Louise Mewton ,&nbsp;Lindsay M. Squeglia","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112822","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112822","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>With increasing legalization and rising potency of cannabis products, cannabis use disorder (CUD) is a growing public health concern, particularly among young adults, who have the highest rates of CUD. While substance use is known to be associated with the oral microbiome, the impact of CUD remains understudied. Given the oral microbiome’s role in overall health, identifying microbial signatures associated with CUD, relative to other substance use disorders (SUDs), may provide insight into its biological mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Saliva samples were collected from young adults (ages 18–25; N = 192) with CUD (n = 129) and non-CUD SUD (n = 63). The non-CUD SUD control group allowed for isolation of CUD-related associations in a population that often uses multiple substances. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, we examined alpha diversity, beta diversity, and taxa abundance between the groups and in relation to cannabis use patterns (frequency and amount; CUD group only), controlling for sequencing batch, age, sex, race, body mass index (BMI), and alcohol use.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Compared to the non-CUD SUD group, the CUD group exhibited significantly lower alpha diversity, distinct beta diversity, and differences in taxa abundance. Among those with CUD, greater cannabis use frequency was linked to lower diversity, while both frequency and amount were associated with higher abundances of strict anaerobes.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>CUD is associated with specific alterations in the oral microbiome, including lower diversity and taxonomic shifts. Associations with cannabis use patterns underscore the relevance of frequent and heavy use. Future research should explore the functional implications of these findings for CUD-related outcomes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112822"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144831025","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Cannabis use among adults who smoke tobacco: Relations with switching from combusted cigarettes to e-cigarettes or very low nicotine cigarettes","authors":"Megan E. Piper ,&nbsp;Jesse T. Kaye ,&nbsp;Thomas M. Piasecki ,&nbsp;James J. Yang ,&nbsp;Anne Buu","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112821","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112821","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Evidence is mixed regarding whether cannabis use impairs tobacco smoking cessation. This study tests the hypothesis that people who co-use tobacco and cannabis are less likely to switch to an alternative tobacco product when asked to do so.</div></div><div><h3>Study design</h3><div>Secondary data analysis of a mixed design with a within-subjects factor (active nicotine patch vs. placebo patch) and a between-subjects factor (study product). Participants sampled their assigned study product for 1 week, then were asked not to smoke their usual brand cigarettes and use only their study product and the study patches for 1 week (a switch week). A washout week was followed by a second switch week during which participants used the other patch type.</div></div><div><h3>Setting/participants</h3><div>Research office. Adults not motivated to quit smoking who smoke ≥ 5 cigarettes/day.</div></div><div><h3>Intervention</h3><div>Study products (very low nicotine cigarettes [VLNCs], e-cigarettes or no product) were provided for 4 weeks and 1 week of active nicotine patches and 1 week of placebo patches were provided in double-blind and counterbalanced fashion, for the switch weeks.</div></div><div><h3>Main outcome measures</h3><div>Number of usual brand cigarettes smoked during the switch weeks.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Data collected September 2019-June 2022 and analyzed November-December 2024. Participants who reported past 30-day co-use of cannabis at baseline (n = 56) smoked significantly more usual brand cigarettes during switch weeks than those who did not co-use (n = 104; p = .03) and were less likely to make a tobacco cessation attempt (p &lt; .05).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Cannabis use is associated with less switching from cigarettes to VLNCs or e-cigarettes.</div></div><div><h3>Trial registration</h3><div>Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04084210).</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112821"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144826694","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Alcohol-related encounter surveillance using emergency medical service records in Massachusetts, 2013–2023","authors":"Amy Bettano ,&nbsp;Ridgely Ficks ,&nbsp;Gerard Gonzales ,&nbsp;Matthew Blackburn ,&nbsp;Joji Suzuki ,&nbsp;Peter R. Chai ,&nbsp;Dana Bernson ,&nbsp;Charlotte Goldfine ,&nbsp;Jonathan L. Burstein","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112819","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112819","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Alcohol is one of the most used substances in the United States. It can be hard to accurately assess alcohol use through self-report or medical records because it is a widespread mainstream legal substance. Identifying alcohol-related encounters in emergency medical services (EMS) records provides additional data on alcohol use.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We used the Massachusetts Ambulance Trip Record Information System (MATRIS) to develop a definition for alcohol-related encounters (AREs) in EMS encounters based on alcohol-related words and symptoms. An additional definition flagged AREs related to alcohol withdrawal or detoxification (ARE WD).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Reviewers assessed over 450 cases to refine definitions resulting in a correct characterization of 95 % of cases (Cohen’s Kappa= 0.95, 95 % Confidence Intervals: 0.89, 1.00). The ARE definitions were applied to all Massachusetts emergency EMS encounters between 2013 and 2023 (n = 8530014). Of those, 3.28 % (95 % CIs: 3.27 %-3.29 %) were AREs while 15.29 % of AREs (95 % CIs: 15.16 %-15.42 %) had symptoms of alcohol withdrawal or detoxification. Both types of alcohol-related encounters increased during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2021, p &lt; 0.05). Compared to non-ARE EMS encounters, AREs had a greater proportion of Asian/Pacific Islander non-Hispanic/Latine (nH/L) (1.2 % of non-AREs versus 1.3 % of AREs), Black nH/L (5.0 % versus 6.4 %), and Hispanic/Latine patients (6.4 % versus 8.4 %) (p &lt; 0.001).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>AREs document alcohol use broader than problematic use or addiction but are subject to observation bias since not all use results in an EMS call. Alcohol use can be identified in existing EMS records however additional research is needed to understand the relationship between AREs and other alcohol use indicators.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"275 ","pages":"Article 112819"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2025-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144779924","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}