Harm Reduction Journal最新文献

{"title":"Characterizing substance users and risk profiles across treatment centers: insights from Iran.","authors":"Saeid Mirzaei, Vahid Yazdi-Feyzabadi, Mohammad Hossein Mehrolhassani, Nouzar Nakhaee, Nadia Oroomiei","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01226-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-025-01226-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Substance use remains a pressing global public health concern and has shown a marked increase in recent years. This study investigates the characteristics and risk behaviors of individuals who use substances across various treatment centers in the city of Kerman, Iran.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in May 2023 across multiple treatment centers in Kerman. A total of 470 participants were recruited from Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) centers, Therapeutic Community (TC) centers, Article 16 compulsory treatment centers, and Drop-in Centers (DICs). Data were collected using the Maudsley Addiction Profile (MAP) questionnaire and laboratory tests, and analyzed using STATA software.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Ninety percent of participants were male, with the most common age range being 26 to 45 years. More than 70% reported initiating substance use after the age of 18. Approximately 64.89% had attempted to stop using substances fewer than two times, while 13.62% had made more than six unsuccessful attempts. Patterns of alcohol, opium, and methamphetamine use varied across treatment settings. The highest rates of syringe sharing, unprotected sexual activity, and criminal activity were reported in the Article 16 center, whereas MMT centers reported the highest levels of spousal conflict. TC centers had the lowest levels of methamphetamine and morphine use.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The majority of participants were male and began using substances after the age of 18. Patients in the Article 16 center exhibited the highest levels of high-risk behaviors, including injection-based substance use, unprotected sexual activity, and criminal involvement. In contrast, MMT centers showed the highest levels of familial conflict, and TC centers had the lowest prevalence of methamphetamine and morphine use. These findings highlight the need for context-specific harm reduction and treatment strategies tailored to the distinct substance use patterns and risk profiles within each treatment setting. Given the structural and demographic differences-such as voluntary enrollment in MMT versus mandated treatment in Article 16-comparative interpretations should remain descriptive and cautious.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"79"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144086174","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Online gambling forums as a potential target for harm reduction: an exploratory natural language processing analysis of a reddit.com forum.","authors":"Mark van der Maas, Jim Samuel","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01220-0","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12954-025-01220-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Globally, there has been a rapid increase in the availability of online gambling. As online gambling has increased in popularity, there has been a corresponding increase in online communities that discuss gambling. The movement of gambling and communities interested in gambling to online spaces presents new challenges to harm reduction. The current study analyses a forum from a popular online forum hosting website (reddit.com) to determine its suitability as a source for data to inform gambling harm reduction in online spaces.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The current study provides an exploratory analysis of 1,141 unique posts and 11,668 comments collected from the online forum r/onlinegambling. The dataset covers posts and comments from August 5, 2015, to October 30, 2023. Natural language processing (NLP) techniques were used to identify common terms and phrases, identify topics with high rates of participant engagement and perform a sentiment analysis of posts and comments.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Sentiment analysis results showed that the majority of posts and comments were positive, but there were substantial numbers of negative and neutral content. Positive content was often congratulatory and focused on winning, neutral posts more commonly focused on practical advice, and negative posts were more commonly concerned with avoiding operators perceived as illegitimate by forum participants.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Results from this study show that there is a varied and robust discussion of different aspects of gambling on r/onlinegambling. Our exploratory analyses suggest that this reddit forum provides important information on how users communicate motivations to gamble, interpretations of gambling experiences, and define potential harms related to gambling online as well as how to avoid or remedy those harms. Reddit forums discussing gambling have great potential for future research interested in more specific aspects of harm reduction and prevention related to online gambling, particularly when using NLP techniques.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"77"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12070730/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144016240","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Characteristics of take-home fentanyl test strip use and support for drug checking services among people who use heroin in Australia: learnings for an increasingly complex drug market.","authors":"Rachel Sutherland, Maureen Steele, Craig Rodgers, Edmund Silins, Rosie Gilliver, Amy Peacock, Monica Barratt, Nadine Ezard, Krista J Siefried, Robert Page, Raimondo Bruno, Phillip Read","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01205-z","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12954-025-01205-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This paper examines: (i) the acceptability of, and behavioural outcomes associated with, take-home fentanyl test strips (FTS), and (ii) support for, and preferences regarding, drug checking services among people who use heroin.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Data were obtained from 78 people who had used heroin in the past 6 months, recruited from treatment and harm reduction services in Sydney, Australia in 2020-21. Participants were provided with 10 BTNX Rapid Response™ single-use immunoassay FTS and surveyed 4 weeks later.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among those who completed the follow-up survey (n = 72), 81% (n = 58) had used at least one FTS by the time of follow-up (median 6 strips). Participants reported high confidence in their ability to use FTS at both baseline (immediately post training) and follow-up. Of those who self-reported a positive FTS result (n = 25), 48% (n = 12) reported using less than they otherwise would have or starting with a smaller amount, and 60% (n = 15) shared this information with peers and/or health professionals. Of those who used FTS and responded, 95% (n = 54/57) reported that they would continue using FTS if they were free to access, and 97% (n = 56/58) would recommend them to their peers. Among those who completed the follow-up survey, the majority (93%; n = 67) reported that they would like to be able to access a drug checking service, preferably via a supervised injecting facility or Needle and Syringe Program.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Acceptability of FTS and support for drug checking were high among our sample. Multi-instrument approaches to drug checking may form one component of an effective response to the emerging threat of illicitly manufactured synthetic opioids.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"75"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12070528/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143985293","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparing smoking-related disease rates from e-cigarette use with those from tobacco cigarette use: a reanalysis of a recently-published study.","authors":"Peter N Lee, Konstantinos Farsalinos","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01230-y","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12954-025-01230-y","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background: &lt;/strong&gt;A recent meta-analysis by Glantz et al. combined odds ratios (ORs) relating e-cigarette use (vaping) to cardiovascular disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other endpoints. They assessed all included studies as having a low risk of bias, and concluded that vaping and smoking have a \"comparable\" disease odds, with dual use associated with more risk than smoking.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Aim: &lt;/strong&gt;To examine the accuracy of these conclusions, giving particular attention to myocardial infarction (MI), stroke and COPD.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods: &lt;/strong&gt;We determined (1) whether the pooled random-effect estimates were correctly calculated from the ORs included, (2) whether the detailed outcomes were correctly described and appropriate and whether additional OR estimates could have been included from the studies considered, (3) whether the data were correctly extracted from the source papers, (4) whether some studies should definitely or possibly have been excluded, (5) what the pooled OR estimates were for MI, stroke and COPD after excluding definitely invalid results and restricting attention to data based on appropriate disease definitions, (6) how estimates of the excess risk (ER = OR - 1) for vaping compare to those we estimate for quitting, (7) whether various sources of bias were adequately accounted for, and (8) whether conclusions were confirmed in studies where reverse causation was not an issue, i.e. where disease onset could not have preceded uptake of vaping.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;We found no major issues regarding pooled estimation, description of diagnoses and extraction of data from the source papers, but some studies should have been excluded, and one further result was available for MI. Using data appropriately extracted for valid diagnoses, we derived pooled OR estimates for vaping vs. smoking of 0.48 (95%CI: 0.35-0.67) for MI, 0.65 (0.49-0.86) for stroke and 0.46 (0.35-0.60) for COPD. These showed a significantly reduced risk for vaping, similar to or lower than expected for quitting smoking for 5 to 10 years, highly relevant given the short period of vaping following earlier smoking for most study participants. For dual use vs. smoking, pooled OR estimates were 1.41 (1.18-1.68) for MI, 1.39 (1.06-1.82) for stroke and 1.32 (1.17-1.50) for COPD. The studies considered were predominantly cross-sectional so could not account for reverse causation, or for those who smoked and became dual users possibly having smoked more cigarettes or smoked for a longer period than those not doing so. Only three publications accounted for reverse causation, each using the same data source, and each found a significant effect of smoking, but not vaping, on the diseases considered.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusion: &lt;/strong&gt;The claim in the original meta-analysis that the studies had a low risk of bias is demonstrably incorrect, and even the biased data suggests that switching to e-cigarettes may redu","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"78"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12070775/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144003195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Study assessing the effectiveness of overdose prevention centers through research (SAFER): an overview of the study protocol.","authors":"Cerdá Magdalena, L Allen Bennett, B Collins Alexandra, N Behrends Czarina, Santacatterina Michele, Jent Victoria, D L Marshall Brandon","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01211-1","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12954-025-01211-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>More than one million people have died from drug overdose in the United States in the past 20 years. The overdose crisis started in the late 1990s with the proliferation of overdoses involving prescription opioids, transitioned to heroin-involved overdoses in 2010, and is currently driven by illegally manufactured synthetic opioids such as fentanyl. In response to this crisis, New York City implemented two publicly recognized overdose prevention centers (OPCs) in the nation in November 2021. Rhode Island became the first US state to authorize OPCs through state legislation and will open a site in Fall 2024. We are conducting a rigorous, multi-site, multi-component evaluation of OPCs in New York City and Rhode Island. At the individual level, we assess whether a cohort of 500 persons utilizing OPCs experience lower rates of overdose, other health problems (e.g., hepatitis C, skin infections), and emergency department use, and a higher rate of substance use treatment initiation, compared to a cohort of 500 persons who use drugs but do not utilize OPCs. At the community level, we examine whether neighborhoods surrounding the OPCs experience a greater change in overdose, measures of drug-related public disorder, and acute economic conditions following the opening of OPCs, compared to neighborhoods with no OPCs. Third, we delve into the role that the operational context, including neighborhood location, program models, and operating procedures, plays in shaping the effectiveness of OPCs using qualitative and ethnographic approaches. Fourth, we estimate the costs and cost savings associated with starting up and operating OPCs. In this paper, we: (1) present the study design and harm reduction framework which is used to evaluate the impact of OPCs in New York City and Rhode Island; (2) share the types of assessment instruments and data sources used to measure changes at the individual and community level; and (3) discuss the strengths and limitations associated with the planned approach to evaluate the health and community effects of OPCs.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 Suppl 1","pages":"76"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12070510/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143997476","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Establishing a community advisory board to align harm reduction research with the unique needs of Black and Latine communities.","authors":"Simon Kapler, Hira Hassan, Alexander Jeremiah, Katurah Bryant, Presto Crespo, Nesta Felix, Sónyi Elena Lopez, Antonio Morales, Sean Reeves, Ayana Jordan","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01214-y","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s12954-025-01214-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Death from opioid use is a growing public health concern, with stark racial and ethnic disparities. The randomized controlled trial described here aims to improve initiation and engagement in harm reduction services for Black and Latine people who use drugs to minimize mortality in these populations. The trial is informed by a Community Advisory Board (CAB) of stakeholders from racial and ethnic minoritized backgrounds committed to promoting health equity in populations disproportionately impacted by the drug overdose crisis. CABs are an underutilized mechanism for engaging communities in research to improve health outcomes. Hence, in this manuscript we outline the process and methods employed in creating a CAB, describe its impact on our research study, and recognize the challenges and adaptations made to the CAB during the study.CAB recruitment targeted active community members from Black and Latine communities in the Bronx, NY and New Haven, CT. After attending community organizational meetings in each place, follow-up email efforts were unsuccessful, prompting a revised approach. Emphasizing the study's focus on historically excluded voices, \"research-naïve\" individuals were sought through online searches and local grassroots organizations, excluding those affiliated with harm reduction groups to minimize bias. Once CAB members were identified, a remote orientation was held, and the CAB began providing regular feedback on research activities, from participant recruitment to educational script details. CAB members' diverse identities and life experiences generated nuanced discussions, which were distilled into feedback improving research materials and recruitment strategies. In the future, the CAB will also guide data analysis and research publications. Other areas of emphasis have included straightforward language in study materials, balanced messaging about harm reduction recommendations, and specific community outreach opportunities. Practical barriers that needed to be addressed for optimal CAB functioning included timely compensation with minimal institutional burden and assistance with meeting coordination and communication.The CAB has ensured that Black and Latine community voices are included in guiding our study, promoting equitable and ethical research. As harm reduction research advances, it is essential to center this work around the intersectional identities of people who use drugs to prevent the disproportionate burden and deaths among Black and Latine people.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 Suppl 1","pages":"74"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12067662/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143964262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"\"You have to love the party setting\": an ethnography of the blurred lines between roles and experiential knowledge in a French harm reduction collective working in the party setting.","authors":"Serena Garbolino, Marie Dos Santos, Ombline Pimond, Lionel Sayag, Nicolas Khatmi, Perrine Roux","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01209-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-025-01209-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The party setting is a dynamic social environment where the world of drug use, the role of music, and a multiplicity of social interactions all converge, often marked by the disruption of social and temporal norms and rules. People who use drugs (PWUD) in the party setting are rarely targeted by institutional harm reduction (HR) interventions despite the many risks specific to this setting. InterCAARUD Festif Île-de-France (IFI) is a collective of French HR associations implementing interventions in the party setting for over a decade through coordinated teams of HR volunteers. We investigated the organization of the IFI collective with a view to acquiring a better understanding of the specific features that enable it to provide relevant HR interventions in the party setting.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We collected data over nine months using ethnographic methods (participant observations, photography, field notes and informal interviews), focus groups and semi-structured interviews. We analyzed these data using a thematic analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Three main themes emerged: (1) coordination of the IFI collective (2) horizontality between the collective's members (i.e., employees and volunteers) and between the nine collaborating HR associations comprising the collective, and (3) affinity between the collective's members and their commitment to HR. All three themes reflect one of the key features of the collective's organization in terms of implementing HR actions, specifically the blurring of roles between partygoers, the collective's employees and its volunteers. This role-blurring fosters the sharing of another key feature - experiential knowledge - at all levels in the collective's organization.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The IFI HR collective is characterized by coordination, horizontality, affinity, and the commitment of its members. Through the blurring of roles between all concerned stakeholders, experiential knowledge is welcomed and used to improve the adaptability and responsiveness of the collective's HR actions. All these elements enable the collective to carry out relevant HR actions in party settings, despite economic and organizational challenges.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"73"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12060522/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143977135","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Centering peers in design and training for a peer-delivered contingency management program for self-identified harm reduction and treatment goals.","authors":"Linda Peng, Erin Stack, Alexis Cooke, Bryan Hartzler, Ryan Cook, Gillian Leichtling, Christi Hildebran, Judith Leahy, Kelsey Smith Payne, Lynn Kunkel, Kim Hoffman, P Todd Korthuis","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01213-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-025-01213-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Novel strategies are needed to engage people who use stimulants into the continuum of addiction care. Contingency management (CM) is the most effective intervention for stimulant use disorder and may engage non-treatment-seeking populations, especially when delivered by peer recovery support specialists (peers). We describe development and training for a novel peer-delivered CM program for stimulant use harm reduction and treatment engagement.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We used a community based participatory research (CBPR) process to develop a CM program focused on self-identified goals for harm reduction and treatment engagement. A steering committee of peers guided study design, CM rewards, schedule, and incentivized goals. Peers completed coaching-to-criterion of six CM skills based on the CM Competence Scale (CMCS), then completed a one-on-one roleplay with a standardized patient. Coaches rated peer performance of each CMCS skill according to its Likert scale (1 = Very Poor to 7 = Excellent) and an a priori rating criterion of 4 ('adequate'). Roleplays included feedback and a 'replay' of skills, if necessary.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The steering committee devised two CM interventions: an enhanced standard-of-care incentivizing peer visits ($20 for weekly peer visits) and an intervention that additionally incentivized self-directed goals ($20 for weekly peer visits and $30 for completed goal-related activities). Self-identified goal-related activities were chosen through a collaborative process and organized into 6 domains: (1) overdose/overamping prevention (2) substance use supports/treatment (3) daily living/housing (4) education/employment (5) mental/physical/spiritual health (6) social relationships. Forty-seven peers across nine peer-led organizations (three rural and six urban organizations across Oregon) completed CM training. All 47 peers met the a priori criterion in their roleplay, with seventeen (36%) requiring a 'replay' of a skill. Mean CMSC summary scores were 28.51 (SD 4.73) on the first attempt and 29.62 (SD 4.01) on the second attempt.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>PEER-CM (Peers Expanding Engagement in Stimulant Harm Reduction with Contingency Management) is among the first trials to use peer-delivered CM for stimulant use, incentivizing peer engagement and self-identified goals for harm reduction and treatment engagement. A CBPR approach strengthened the study design by incorporating peer guidance. Peers in this large, multisite sample demonstrated adequate CM delivery skills with acceptable fidelity following training. Trial Registration This study is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05700994). Registered 26 January, 2023.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 Suppl 1","pages":"72"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12057027/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144004540","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Repeated point-prevalence of switching away from smoking after electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) purchase.","authors":"Arielle Selya, Sooyong Kim, Saul Shiffman, Nicholas Goldenson","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01231-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-025-01231-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Adults who smoke cigarettes can benefit from switching completely to electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS). Research is needed to examine longer-term switching trajectories beyond one year of follow-up.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This analysis of a previously-described longitudinal cohort study of adults who smoke and purchased JUUL focused on N = 11,153 who completed the 12-month (12 M) follow-up and ≥ 1 of 4 surveys in the second year (Y2; at 15, 18, 21, and 24 months). Outcomes were repeated point prevalence of product use over the past-30-days (P30D) at each Y2 follow-up: repeated point prevalence-switching (i.e., no P30D smoking at any available Y2 follow-ups), repeated point prevalence-smoking, or varying status. Associations between product use status at 12M (switched, exclusive smoking, or dual used) and Y2 product use patterns were examined.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Most adults who smoked at baseline and were switched at 12 M reported repeated point prevalence-switching over Y2 (69.5%); repeated point prevalence-smoking was rare (6.2%). In contrast, > 50% of those who were smoking at 12 M (exclusively or with ENDS [JUUL or other brand]) persistently smoked over Y2. Supplementary analyses showed that among adults who exclusively used ENDS at 12 M, those who used ENDS daily were more likely to persistently switch over Y2; similarly, among adults who smoked at 12 M (either exclusively or dual-use with ENDS) those who smoked nondaily were more likely to persistently switch over Y2. Over half of adults who dual used at both 12 M and 24 M substantially reduced (i.e., by 50%+) their baseline cigarette consumption.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>For the majority of participants, product use status at 12 M was consistent with use patterns in the second year: most adults who smoked at baseline and were switched at 12 M reported repeated point prevalence-switching over Y2, while any smoking at 12 M- especially daily smoking- was usually followed by repeated point prevalence-smoking. These findings indicate that switching and smoking behavior is generally maintained and remains stable one year after purchasing ENDS.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"71"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12048984/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144019761","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Conceptualizing 'cannabis harm reduction': lessons learned from cannabis compassion clubs and medical dispensaries in British Columbia (Canada).","authors":"Marilou Gagnon, Heather Hobbs","doi":"10.1186/s12954-025-01199-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s12954-025-01199-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Drawing on a qualitative case study of cannabis compassion clubs and medical dispensaries in British Columbia (Canada), the main goal of this paper is to generate insights that have the potential to advance and broaden the conceptualization of 'cannabis harm reduction'.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We undertook a qualitative case study by drawing on seven data sources: (1) online content, (2) news stories, (3) legal documents, (4) policy documents, (5) information about enforcement, (6) interviews with (i) key informants, (ii) participants with operational experience (i.e., people engaged in the active operations of compassion clubs/dispensaries in various roles), and (iii) participants with lived experience of medicating with cannabis, and finally (7) field notes. For this paper, we applied a harm reduction lens to the participant interview data.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Applying a harm reduction lens to the participant interview data allowed us to identify two main conceptual dimensions: structural and operational. The structural dimension focused on the work undertaken by cannabis compassion clubs and medical dispensaries to address a risk environment created by systems, laws, and policies. The main themes identified here were access, safety, and quality. The operational dimension focused on the characteristics of the services provided cannabis compassion clubs and medical dispensaries. The main themes identified here were low-threshold, compassion, and supports. Our findings suggest that these two dimensions worked together to generate conditions conducive to 'cannabis harm reduction'.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Based on our findings, we identified research, policy, and advocacy implications. We argue that research should focus on loss of access, regulation, a broader conceptualization of cannabis substitution, and better integration between cannabis and harm reduction. We also highlight the need for a harm reduction analysis of the Cannabis Act, new community-oriented models to meet the needs of people who medicate with cannabis, and non-profit supply pathways. Finally, we suggest that structurally-oriented advocacy is needed to achieve community-oriented models of cannabis cultivation, distribution, and consumption and that this advocacy would benefit harm reduction more broadly.</p>","PeriodicalId":12922,"journal":{"name":"Harm Reduction Journal","volume":"22 1","pages":"70"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12042633/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144019758","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}