scholarly journals Opioid Epidemic in the United States: Empirical Trends, and A Literature Review of Social Determinants and Epidemiological, Pain Management, and Treatment Patterns

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gopal K Singh ◽  
Isaac E. Kim, Jr. ◽  
Mehrete Girmay ◽  
Chrisp Perry ◽  
Gem P. Daus ◽  
...  

Objectives: Dramatic increases in opioid and drug overdose mortality have occurred in the United States (US) over the past two decades. To address this national public health crisis and identify gaps in the literature, we analyzed recent empirical trends in US drug overdose mortality by key social determinants and conducted a selective review of the recent literature on the magnitude of the opioid crisis facing different racial/ethnic, socioeconomic, and rural-urban segments of the US population. Methods: We used the 1999-2017 mortality data from the US National Vital Statistics System to analyze trends in drug overdose mortality by race/ethnicity, age, and geographic area. Log-linear regression was used to model mortality trends. Using various key words and their combinations, we searched PubMed and Google Scholar for select peerreviewed journal articles and government reports published on the opioid epidemic between 2010 and 2018. Results: Our original analysis and review indicate marked increases in drug overdose mortality overall and by race/ethnicity and geographic regions, with adolescents and young adults experiencing steep increases in mortality between 1999 and 2017. Our selective search yielded 405 articles, of which 39 publications were selected for detailed review. Suicide mortality from drug overdose among teens aged 12-19 increased consistently between 2009 and 2017, particularly among teen girls. The rise of efficient global supply chains has increased opioid prescription use and undoubtedly contributed to the opioid epidemic. Many other important contributing factors to the epidemic include lack of education and economic opportunities, poor working conditions, and low social capital in disadvantaged communities. Conclusions and Global Health Implications: Our analysis and review indicate substantial disparities in drug overdoses and related mortality, pain management, and treatment outcomes according to social determinants. Increases in drug overdoses and resultant mortality are not only unique to the US, but have also been observed in other industrialized countries. Healthcare systems, community leaders, and policymakers addressing the opioidepidemic should focus on upstream structural factors including education, economic opportunity, social cohesion, racial/ethnic disadvantage, geographic isolation, and life satisfaction. Key words: • Opioids • Drug overdose • Mortality • Pain management • Treatment • Race/Ethnicity • Social determinants • Health disparities Copyright © 2019 Singh et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Blood ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 114 (22) ◽  
pp. 3069-3069
Author(s):  
Casey L O'Connell ◽  
Pedram Razavi ◽  
Roberta McKean-Cowdin ◽  
Malcolm C. Pike

Abstract Abstract 3069 Poster Board III-6 Background Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is an aggressive malignancy whose incidence declines through adolescence and then increases steadily with age. Prognosis appears to be inversely related to age among adults. We sought to explore the impact of race/ethnicity on incidence and survival among adults with ALL in the United States (US). Methods We examined trends in incidence and survival among adults with ALL in the US using the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) program which includes data from 17 SEER registries. We calculated the incidence rates for the most recent time period (2001-2005) because the classification for ALL subtypes was more complete during this time. For the survival analysis we used the data collected between 1975 and 2005. We categorized race/ethnicity into 5 mutually exclusive categories: non-Hispanic whites (NHW), Hispanic whites (HW), African Americans (AA), Asian/Pacific Islanders (API) and American Indians/Native Alaskans (AI/NA). Hispanic ethnicity was defined using SEER's Hispanic-origin variable which is based on the NAACCR Hispanic Identification Algorithm (NHIA); 11 patients dually coded as black and Hispanic were included in the AA group for our analyses. Few ALL cases were identified among AI/NA, so that group is not represented in the final analyses. We included ALL cases coded in the SEER registry using the International Classification of Disease for Oncology (ICD-0-3) as 9827-9829 and 9835-9837. We excluded cases of Burkitt's leukemia (n=228), cases that were not confirmed by microscopic or cytologic tests (n=132), cases that were reported only based on autopsy data (n=3) and cases whose race/ethnicity were unknown (n=20). The average annual incidence rates per 100,000 for 2001-2005, age-adjusted to the 2000 US standard population were calculated using SEER*Stat Version 6.4.4 statistical software. We used multivariate Cox hazard models stratified by SEER registry and age category to estimate the hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for relative survival of adult ALL cases across race/ethnicity, sex and cell of origin (B- or T-cell). All models were adjusted for the diagnosis era, and use of non-CNS radiation. The model also included an interaction term for age and diagnosis era. We performed a separate stratified analysis of the impact of race/ethnicity on survival within age subgroups (20-29, 30-39, 40-59, 60-69, 70+). Results The highest incidence rate (IR) of ALL was observed for HW (IR: 1.60; 95% CI: 1.43-1.79). HW had a significantly higher IR across all age categories as compared to the other racial/ethnic groups, while AA had the lowest IR. In particular, the observed rate of B-cell ALL among HW (IR 0.77; 95% CI 0.69-0.87) was more than twice that of NHW (IR: 0.29; 95% CI: 0.27-0.32) and more than three times the rate observed among AA (IR: 0.20; 95% CI: 0.15-0.26). In contrast, we did not observe statistically significant variability in the rates of T-cell ALL across race/ethnic groups (overall IR: 0.12; 95% CI: 0.11-0.14). Survival was significantly poorer among AA (HR: 1.26; 95% CI: 1.09-1.46), HW (HR: 1.21; 95% CI: 1.09-1.46), and API (HR: 1.18; 95% CI: 1.06-1.32) compared to NHW with all subtypes of ALL. Among adults younger than 40 with B-cell ALL, survival was significantly poorer among AA (HR: 1.60; 95% CI:1.021-2.429) and HW (HR: 1.53; 95% CI:1.204-1.943) with a non-signficant trend among API (HR: 1.22; 95% 0.834-1.755) compared to NHW. Survival differences between the different racial/ethnic groups were no longer statistically significant among adults with B-cell ALL over the age of 40. For T-cell ALL, survival was significantly poorer among AA (HR: 1.61; 95% CI: 1.22-2.10), HW (HR: 1.49; 95% CI: 1.14-1.93) and API (HR: 1.57; 95% CI: 1.13-2.13), as compared to NHW. A similar survival pattern by age (adults above and below age 40 years) was observed for T-cell as described for B-cell, with AA under 40 having a particularly dismal prognosis (HR: 2.89; 95% CI 1.96-4.17) compared to NHW. Conclusions The incidence rate of B-cell ALL among adults in the US is higher among HW than other ethnic groups. Survival is significantly poorer among AA and HW than among NHW under the age of 40 with B-cell ALL. Survival is also significantly poorer among AA, HW and API than among NHW with T-cell ALL in adults under 40. Survival trends appear to converge after the age of 40 among all racial/ethnic groups. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Friedman ◽  
Helena Hansen

Drug overdose mortality rates have increased sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent years, overdose death rates were rising most rapidly among racial/ethnic minority communities. The pandemic has disproportionately affected communities of color in a wide swath of health, social, and economic outcomes. Careful attention is therefore warranted to trends in overdose mortality by race/ethnicity during COVID-19. We calculated total drug overdose death rates per 100,000 population by race/ethnicity for the 1999-2020 time period. We find that Black overdose mortality overtook that of White individuals in 2020 for the first time since 1999. Between 2019 and 2020 Black individuals had the largest percent increase in overdose mortality, of 48.8%, compared to 26.3% among White individuals. In 2020, Black overdose death rates rose to 36.8 per 100,000, representing 16.3% higher than the rate for White individuals for the same period. American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) individuals experienced the highest rate of overdose mortality in 2020, of 41.4 per 100,000, representing 30.8% higher than the rate among White individuals. Our findings suggest that drug overdose mortality is increasingly becoming a racial justice issue in the United States and appears to have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Providing individuals with a safer supply of drugs, closing gaps in access to MOUD and harm reductions services, and ending routine incarceration of individuals with substance use disorders represent urgently needed, evidence-based strategies that can be employed to reduce rising inequalities in overdose.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shashwat Deepali Nagar ◽  
Andrew B. Conley ◽  
I. King Jordan

AbstractPharmacogenomic (PGx) variants mediate how individuals respond to medication, and response differences among racial/ethnic groups have been attributed to patterns of PGx diversity. We hypothesized that genetic ancestry (GA) would provide higher resolution for stratifying PGx risk, since it serves as a more reliable surrogate for genetic diversity than self-identified race/ethnicity (SIRE), which includes a substantial social component. We analyzed a cohort of 8,628 individuals from the United States (US), for whom we had both SIRE information and whole genome genotypes, with a focus on the three largest SIRE groups in the US: White, Black, and Hispanic. Whole genome genotypes were used to characterize individuals’ continental ancestry fractions – European, African, and Native American – and individuals were grouped according to their GA profiles. SIRE and GA groups were found to be highly concordant. Continental ancestry predicts individuals’ SIRE with >96% accuracy, and accordingly GA provides only a marginal increase in resolution for PGx risk stratification. PGx variants are highly diverged compared to the genomic background; 82 variants show significant frequency differences among SIRE groups, and genome-wide patterns of PGx variation are almost entirely concordant with SIRE. Nevertheless, 97% of PGx variation is found within rather than between groups. Examples of highly differentiated PGx variants illustrate how SIRE partitions PGx variation based on group-specific ancestry patterns and contains valuable information for risk stratification. Finally, we show that individuals who identify as Black or Hispanic benefit more when SIRE is considered for treatment decisions than individuals from the majority White population.


2021 ◽  
pp. e1-e8
Author(s):  
Joseph Friedman ◽  
Samir Akre

Objectives. To determine the magnitude of increases in monthly drug-related overdose mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Methods. We leveraged provisional records from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided as rolling 12-month sums, which are helpful for smoothing, yet may mask pandemic-related spikes in overdose mortality. We cross-referenced these rolling aggregates with previous monthly data to estimate monthly drug-related overdose mortality for January through July 2020. We quantified historical errors stemming from reporting delays and estimated empirically derived 95% prediction intervals (PIs). Results. We found that 9192 (95% PI = 8988, 9397) people died from drug overdose in May 2020—making it the deadliest month on record—representing a 57.7% (95% PI = 54.2%, 61.2%) increase over May 2019. Most states saw large-magnitude increases, with the highest in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. We observed low concordance between rolling 12-month aggregates and monthly pandemic-related shocks. Conclusions. Unprecedented increases in overdose mortality occurred during the pandemic, highlighting the value of presenting monthly values alongside smoothed aggregates for detecting shocks. Public Health Implications. Drastic exacerbations of the US overdose crisis warrant renewed investments in overdose surveillance and prevention during the pandemic response and postpandemic recovery efforts. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print April 15, 2021: e1–e8. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306256 )


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
De-Chih Lee ◽  
Hailun Liang ◽  
Leiyu Shi

Abstract Objective This study applied the vulnerability framework and examined the combined effect of race and income on health insurance coverage in the US. Data source The household component of the US Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS-HC) of 2017 was used for the study. Study design Logistic regression models were used to estimate the associations between insurance coverage status and vulnerability measure, comparing insured with uninsured or insured for part of the year, insured for part of the year only, and uninsured only, respectively. Data collection/extraction methods We constructed a vulnerability measure that reflects the convergence of predisposing (race/ethnicity), enabling (income), and need (self-perceived health status) attributes of risk. Principal findings While income was a significant predictor of health insurance coverage (a difference of 6.1–7.2% between high- and low-income Americans), race/ethnicity was independently associated with lack of insurance. The combined effect of income and race on insurance coverage was devastating as low-income minorities with bad health had 68% less odds of being insured than high-income Whites with good health. Conclusion Results of the study could assist policymakers in targeting limited resources on subpopulations likely most in need of assistance for insurance coverage. Policymakers should target insurance coverage for the most vulnerable subpopulation, i.e., those who have low income and poor health as well as are racial/ethnic minorities.


Author(s):  
Jay J. Xu ◽  
Jarvis T. Chen ◽  
Thomas R. Belin ◽  
Ronald S. Brookmeyer ◽  
Marc A. Suchard ◽  
...  

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic in the United States has disproportionately impacted communities of color across the country. Focusing on COVID-19-attributable mortality, we expand upon a national comparative analysis of years of potential life lost (YPLL) attributable to COVID-19 by race/ethnicity (Bassett et al., 2020), estimating percentages of total YPLL for non-Hispanic Whites, non-Hispanic Blacks, Hispanics, non-Hispanic Asians, and non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Natives, contrasting them with their respective percent population shares, as well as age-adjusted YPLL rate ratios—anchoring comparisons to non-Hispanic Whites—in each of 45 states and the District of Columbia using data from the National Center for Health Statistics as of 30 December 2020. Using a novel Monte Carlo simulation procedure to perform estimation, our results reveal substantial racial/ethnic disparities in COVID-19-attributable YPLL across states, with a prevailing pattern of non-Hispanic Blacks and Hispanics experiencing disproportionately high and non-Hispanic Whites experiencing disproportionately low COVID-19-attributable YPLL. Furthermore, estimated disparities are generally more pronounced when measuring mortality in terms of YPLL compared to death counts, reflecting the greater intensity of the disparities at younger ages. We also find substantial state-to-state variability in the magnitudes of the estimated racial/ethnic disparities, suggesting that they are driven in large part by social determinants of health whose degree of association with race/ethnicity varies by state.


2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (5) ◽  
pp. 704-727 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sangmi Kim ◽  
Eun-Ok Im ◽  
Jianghong Liu ◽  
Connie Ulrich

This study aimed to explore race/ethnicity-specific dimensionalities of chronic stress before and during pregnancy for non-Hispanic (N-H) White, N-H Black, Hispanic, and Asian women in the United States. This study analyzed the data among 6,850 women from the New York City and Washington State Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (2004-2007) linked with birth certificates. Separate exploratory factor analysis was conducted by race/ethnicity using a maximum-likelihood extraction method with 26 chronic stress items before and during pregnancy. Correlations and internal consistency reliabilities among items and latent factors determined race/ethnicity-specific factor structures of chronic stress. Chronic stress was race/ethnicity-distinctive and multidimensional with low correlations among the factors ( r = .07-.28, p < .05). Despite financial hardship, perceived isolation, and physical violence underlying chronic stress among the racial/ethnic groups, intergroup variations existed under each group’s cultural or sociopolitical contexts. This study could help develop targeted strategies to intervene with women’s chronic stressors before childbirth.


2018 ◽  
Vol 108 ◽  
pp. 379-383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfonso Flores-Lagunes ◽  
Hugo B. Jales ◽  
Judith Liu ◽  
Norbert L. Wilson

We document the differences in food insecurity incidence and severity by race/ethnicity and immigrant status over the Great Recession. We show that the disadvantaged groups with a higher incidence of food insecurity do not necessarily have a higher severity of food insecurity, which underscores the importance of examining both the extensive and intensive margins of food insecurity. Our decomposition analysis indicates that the contribution of compositional and structural factors to the observed differences in exposure to food insecurity is heterogeneous across these groups and over the Great Recession. Finally, SNAP does not seem to fundamentally change the patterns documented.


Assessment ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 107319112110386
Author(s):  
Violeta J. Rodriguez ◽  
Dominique L. La Barrie ◽  
Miriam C. Zegarac ◽  
Anne Shaffer

The limited inclusion of racial/ethnic minorities in the development and validation of parenting measures limits our understanding of whether parenting constructs are valid in racial and ethnic minorities. Tests of measurement invariance/equivalence (MI/E) of parenting measures can help evaluate the validity of parenting constructs among racial/ethnic minorities. This systematic review summarized studies on MI/E of parenting constructs by race/ethnicity and evaluated the strength of the evidence. A literature search was conducted using various databases and references to retrieve studies from the United States. Indeed, 10 studies were identified that tested for MI/E of eight parenting scales by race/ethnicity. Only one scale showed moderate evidence of MI/E, five showed weak evidence of MI/E, and two showed no evidence of MI/E. Most studies (80%) used factor analytic methods to test for MI/E, but only two studies (20%) examined all levels of invariance. These findings show that differences exist in how racial/ethnic minorities perceive parenting constructs. Further research is needed to develop more inclusive parenting measures, to protect against the ways in which biased measures may pathologize or misrepresent parenting practices among racial/ethnic minorities.


Stroke ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 47 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Fang ◽  
Keming Yuan ◽  
Carma Ayala ◽  
Renee Gindi ◽  
Brian Ward

Introduction: The proportion of US adults who are foreign-born has almost tripled since 1970. While foreign-born adults have lower cardiovascular disease mortality and risk factors (e.g., hypertension) than US-born adults, less is known about the morbidity of stroke in this population. Objective: To compare the prevalence of stroke among US adults by birthplace. Methods: We used data on 223,842 non-institutionalized adults from the 2006-2013 National Health Interview Survey. Birthplace was categorized as US- and foreign-born, and foreign-born was then grouped into 7 regions. Data on years of living in the US was included. Self-reported stroke was defined as ever being told by doctor or other health professional that s/he had a stroke. Select descriptive (age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, health insurance, language of interview, use of interpreter) and health characteristics (hypertension, diabetes, body mass index, alcohol use, smoking status) were used in analysis. Age-standardized prevalence of stroke was compared between US- and foreign-born and then by birthplace regions among foreign-born. Adjusted odd ratios (AORs) were used to assess stroke risk between US- and foreign-born after adjusting for demographic and health characteristics. Results: Sixteen percent of US adults were classified as foreign-born. Age-standardized prevalence of stroke was higher among US- than foreign-born adults overall (2.7% vs 2.0%, p<0.0001) and by race/ethnicity: non-Hispanic blacks (4.1% (US) vs 2.2% (foreign-born), p<0.0001), Hispanics (2.8% vs 2.2%, p=0.03) and non-Hispanic whites (2.5% vs 1.7%, p<0.0001). Compared to US-born men, AORs of stroke for foreign-born men by region of birth, ranged from 0.24 (95% confidence interval 0.08-0.69) for Africa to 1.05 (0.74-1.51) for Europe. Among foreign-born women, AORs ranged from 0.07 (0.01-0.43) for the Middle East to 1.13 (0.54-2.34) for Africa, after adjustment for selected characteristics. Among foreign-born adults, there was no association between age-standardized stroke prevalence and the number of years living in the US. Conclusion: Overall, foreign-born US adults had a lower prevalence of stroke than US-born adults. However, considerable heterogeneity of stroke risk was noted by region of birth.


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