scholarly journals Validating Imputation Procedures to Calculate Corrected Opioid-Involved Overdose Deaths, Marion County, Indiana, 2011-2016

2019 ◽  
Vol 135 (1) ◽  
pp. 124-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumedha Gupta ◽  
Alex Cohen ◽  
Evan M. Lowder ◽  
Bradley R. Ray
Keyword(s):  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Geographic Area ◽  
Opioid Epidemic ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Marion County ◽  
True Number ◽  
Vital Records ◽  
Simple Imputation ◽  
Overdose Deaths ◽  
Imputation Approach

Objectives: Understanding the scope of the current opioid epidemic requires accurate counts of the number of opioid-involved drug overdose deaths. Given known errors and limitations in the reporting of these deaths, several studies have used statistical methods to develop estimates of the true number of opioid-involved overdose deaths. This study validates these procedures using a detailed county-level database of linked toxicology and vital records data. Methods: We extracted and linked toxicology and vital records data from Marion County, Indiana (Indianapolis), during a 6-year period (2011-2016). Using toxicology data as a criterion measure, we tested the validity of multiple imputation procedures, including the Ruhm regression-based imputation approach for correcting the number of opioid-involved overdose deaths. Results: Estimates deviated from true opioid-involved overdose deaths by 3% and increased in accuracy during the study period (2011-2016). For example, in 2016, 231 opioid-involved overdose deaths were noted in the toxicology data, whereas the corresponding imputed estimate was 233 opioid-involved overdose deaths. A simple imputation approach, based on the share of opioid-involved overdose deaths among all drug overdose deaths for which the death certificate specified ≥1 drug, deviated from true opioid-involved overdose deaths by ±5%. Conclusions: Commonly used imputation procedures produced estimates of the number of opioid-involved overdose deaths that are similar to the true number of opioid-involved overdose deaths obtained from toxicology data. Although future studies should examine whether these results extend beyond the geographic area covered in our data set, our findings support the continued use of these imputation procedures to quantify the extent of the opioid epidemic.

scholarly journals Confronting Two Crises: The COVID-19 Pandemic, the Opioid Epidemic, and the Industrial Hygienist

2021 ◽  
pp. 104829112110295
Author(s):  
Jonathan Rosen ◽  
Peter Harnett
Keyword(s):  
Disease Control ◽  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Industrial Hygiene ◽  
Prevention Programs ◽  
Opioid Epidemic ◽  
Opioid Misuse ◽  
Opioid Crisis ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Overdose Deaths ◽  
Industrial Hygienist

This article was originally written for and published in the January 2021 issue of The Synergist, a monthly publication of the American Industrial Hygiene Association. The article addresses the convergence of the COVID-19 and opioid crises, the impact of the opioid crisis on the workplace and workers, and the role that industrial hygienists can play in developing workplace programs to prevent and respond to opioid misuse. While the article is specifically written for industrial hygienists, the review and recommendations will be useful to others who are developing workplace opioid prevention programs. Note that the data presented in this article were current as of January 2021. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest available data are for the twelve-month period ending October 2020 and include 88,990 total overdose deaths and 91,862 predicted, when reporting is completed. Source: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm (accessed on 15 June 2021).

Accidental Overdose Deaths in Oklahoma, 2002–2017: Opioid and Methamphetamine Trends

2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (7) ◽  
pp. 672-678
Author(s):  
Rachel Bonk ◽  
Ross J Miller ◽  
Joshua Lanter ◽  
Cheryl Niblo ◽  
Jesse Kemp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Sharp Increase ◽  
The State ◽  
Prescription Opioids ◽  
Opioid Epidemic ◽  
Death Rates ◽  
Synthetic Opioids ◽  
Accidental Overdose ◽  
Overdose Deaths

Abstract To evaluate trends related to accidental overdose deaths in Oklahoma, with a focus on opioids and methamphetamine. All accidental drug overdose deaths in the state of Oklahoma from 2002 to 2017 were reviewed. Opioids were grouped into the following categories: all opioids, prescription opioids, synthetic opioids and heroin. Age-adjusted death rates for methamphetamine and each opioid category were calculated and analyzed. Accidental overdoses accounted for 9,936 deaths during the study period. Of these, opioids were seen in 62.9%, with prescription opioids comprising 53.8%, synthetic opioids 10.3% and heroin 2.8%. Synthetic opioids, despite a recent upward nationwide trend, showed a slight overall decrease (−6.8%) from 2009 to 2017. In contrast, methamphetamine showed a 402.2% increase from 2009 to 2017 and an overall increase of 1,526.7%. Methamphetamine was involved in the most overdoses (1,963), followed by oxycodone (1,724). Opioid-related deaths were most common among white individuals (90.3%) and showed a slight male predilection (56.9%). With the intent of assessing the opioid epidemic as it relates to accidental overdoses in Oklahoma, this study suggests that opioid-related overdoses have slowed in recent years amidst a sharp increase in methamphetamine deaths.

The Opioid Epidemic Blunted the Mortality Benefit of Medicaid Expansion

2020 ◽  
pp. 107755872091962 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brandon W. Yan ◽  
Frank A. Sloan ◽  
W. John Boscardin ◽  
Felicia Guo ◽  
R. Adams Dudley
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Mortality Data ◽  
Medicaid Expansion ◽  
Opioid Epidemic ◽  
Mortality Benefit ◽  
Difference In Differences ◽  
All Cause Mortality ◽  
Control And Prevention ◽  
Overdose Deaths

Although the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion reduced uninsurance, less is known about its impact on mortality, especially in the context of the opioid epidemic. We conducted a difference-in-differences study comparing trends in mortality between expansion and nonexpansion states from 2011 to 2016 using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention mortality data. We analyzed all-cause deaths, health care amenable deaths, drug overdose deaths, and deaths from causes other than drug overdose among adults aged 20 to 64 years. Medicaid expansion was associated with a 2.7% reduction ( p = .020) in health care amenable mortality, and a 1.9% reduction ( p = .042) in mortality not due to drug overdose. However, the expansion was not associated with any change in all-cause mortality (0.2% reduction, p = .84). In addition, drug overdose deaths rose more sharply in expansion versus nonexpansion states. The absence of all-cause mortality reduction until drug overdose deaths were excluded indicate that the opioid epidemic had a mitigating impact on any potential lives saved by Medicaid expansion.

scholarly journals US drug overdose deaths: a global challenge

The Lancet ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 387 (10017) ◽  
pp. 404 ◽  
Author(s):  
The Lancet
Keyword(s):  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Global Challenge ◽  
Overdose Deaths

Trends in U.S. Drug Overdose Deaths

2018 ◽  
Vol 169 (5) ◽  
pp. 355
Author(s):  
Mary E. Cox ◽  
Nicole Dzialowy ◽  
Lillie Armstrong ◽  
Scott Proescholdbell
Keyword(s):  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Overdose Deaths

scholarly journals Identifying Unreported Opioid Deaths Through Toxicology Data and Vital Records Linkage: Case Study in Marion County, Indiana, 2011–2016

2018 ◽  
Vol 108 (12) ◽  
pp. 1682-1687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evan M. Lowder ◽  
Bradley R. Ray ◽  
Philip Huynh ◽  
Alfarena Ballew ◽  
Dennis P. Watson
Keyword(s):  
Marion County ◽  
Vital Records ◽  
Opioid Deaths

scholarly journals The Economic Underpinnings of the Drug Epidemic

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Seltzer
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Drug Overdose ◽  
Manufacturing Sector ◽  
State Level ◽  
Opioid Overdose ◽  
Transformative Change ◽  
Drug Deaths ◽  
Overdose Deaths ◽  
The U.S

U.S. labor markets have experienced transformative change over the past half century. Spurred on by global economic change, robotization, and the decline of labor unions, state labor markets have shifted away from an occupational regime dominated by the production of goods to one characterized by the provision of services. Prior studies have proposed that deterioration of employment opportunities may be associated with the rise of substance use disorders and drug overdose deaths, yet no clear link between changes in labor market dynamics in the U.S. manufacturing sector and drug overdose deaths has been established. Using restricted-use vital registration records between 1999-2017 that comprise over 700,000 drug deaths, I test two questions. First, what is the association between manufacturing decline and drug and opioid overdose mortality rates? Second, how much of the increase in these drug-related outcomes can be accounted for by manufacturing decline? The findings provide strong evidence that restructuring of the U.S. labor market has played an important upstream role in the current drug crisis. Up to 77,000 overdose deaths for men and up to 40,000 overdose deaths for women are attributable to the decline of state-level manufacturing over this nearly two-decade period. These results persist in models that adjust for other social, economic, and policy trends changing at the same time, including the supply of prescription opioids. Critically, the findings signal the value of policy interventions that aim to reduce persistent economic precarity experienced by individuals and communities, especially the economic strain placed upon the middle class.

scholarly journals Mosaicking Weather Radar Retrievals from an Operational Heterogeneous Network at C and X Band for Precipitation Monitoring in Italian Central Apennines

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 248
Author(s):  
Stefano Barbieri ◽  
Saverio Di Fabio ◽  
Raffaele Lidori ◽  
Francesco L. Rossi ◽  
Frank S. Marzano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Atmospheric Precipitation ◽  
Weather Radar ◽  
Geographic Area ◽  
Single Frequency ◽  
Estimation Accuracy ◽  
Central Apennines ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Area Of Interest ◽  
Spatial Coverage ◽  
Network Pattern

Meteorological radar networks are suited to remotely provide atmospheric precipitation retrieval over a wide geographic area for severe weather monitoring and near-real-time nowcasting. However, blockage due to buildings, hills, and mountains can hamper the potential of an operational weather radar system. The Abruzzo region in central Italy’s Apennines, whose hydro-geological risks are further enhanced by its complex orography, is monitored by a heterogeneous system of three microwave radars at the C and X bands with different features. This work shows a systematic intercomparison of operational radar mosaicking methods, based on bi-dimensional rainfall products and dealing with both C and X bands as well as single- and dual-polarization systems. The considered mosaicking methods can take into account spatial radar-gauge adjustment as well as different spatial combination approaches. A data set of 16 precipitation events during the years 2018–2020 in the central Apennines is collected (with a total number of 32,750 samples) to show the potentials and limitations of the considered operational mosaicking approaches, using a geospatially-interpolated dense network of regional rain gauges as a benchmark. Results show that the radar-network pattern mosaicking, based on the anisotropic radar-gauge adjustment and spatial averaging of composite data, is better than the conventional maximum-value merging approach. The overall analysis confirms that heterogeneous weather radar mosaicking can overcome the issues of single-frequency fixed radars in mountainous areas, guaranteeing a better spatial coverage and a more uniform rainfall estimation accuracy over the area of interest.

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