Gender Comparisons Among Asian American and Pacific Islander Patients in Drug Dependency Treatment

Abstract

Background Few studies have focused on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), despite indications of increasing substance abuse among AAPIs in recent years. Objectives This prospective longitudinal study examined gender differences among AAPIs in treatment. Methods The study included 567 (177 women, 390 men) AAPI patients drawn from two prior studies, one with 32 community treatment programs in 13 California counties (CalTOP, 3, 9months), and another project including 36 treatment sites in 5 California counties (TSI, 3, 12 months). Baseline and follow-up assessments utilized the Addiction Severity Index (ASI). A subset of patients was assessed at 3 and 9 /12 months (n=106). Results Significant gender-related differences were observed at baseline: fewer women than men were employed or never married. More women were living with someone having alcohol and drug problems. Methamphetamine was the primary drug for women and men, followed by alcohol and heroin. Compared to AAPI men, AAPI women reported greater problem severity in family/social relationships (0.18 vs. 0.11, p<.001), employment (0.68 vs. 0.56, p<0.001), and mental health (0.19 vs. 0.14, p<0.01). Relative to women, AAPI men reported greater treatment satisfaction at the 3-month follow-up. Significant improvements at follow-up were observed in family, alcohol, drug, and legal domains for both genders, and in mental health for men only. Compared to AAPI men, AAPI women demonstrated significantly greater improvements in drug problems (ΔASI=0.07, p<0.05). Conclusions Gender differences revealed in this study suggest a need for a greater treatment focus on psychiatric problems for AAPI women and drug use problems for AAPI men.

Sex differences in methamphetamine use disorder perused from pre-clinical and clinical studies: Potential therapeutic impacts

“…However, psychiatric problems and adverse consequences associated with METH use were more prominent in women compared to men ( Simpson et al, 2016 ). Similarly, problems related to jobs and family/social relationships were more severe in women than men ( Han et al, 2016 ; Hser et al, 2005 ; Lin et al, 2004 ). Higher rates of criminal behaviors were reported in men who use METH than women ( Brecht et al, 2004 ; Hser et al, 2005 ; Lin et al, 2004 ; Nie et al, 2021 ; Simpson et al, 2016 ).…”

“…METH use disorder is a neuropsychiatric disorder that impacts both male and female users negatively ( Cservenka and Ray, 2017 ; Darke et al, 2011 ; DiMiceli et al, 2016 ; Han et al, 2016 ; He et al, 2020 ; Lisa et al, 2019 ; Mayo et al, 2019 ; McKetin et al, 2011 ; Mihan et al, 2018 ; Neumann et al, 2018 ; Polcin et al, 2012 ; Su et al, 2017 ; Zhao et al, 2021b ). In general, humans who carry a MUD diagnosis suffer from cognitive deficits that appear to be related to METH-induced neuropathological abnormalities that include biochemical and structural changes in the brain ( Bae et al, 2006 ; Cadet and Bisagno, 2015 ; Cadet et al, 2014 ; Chang et al, 2002 ; Cloak et al, 2011 ; Hall et al, 2015 ; Heinzerling et al, 2016 ; Heinzerling and Shoptaw, 2012 ; Johnson et al, 2010 ; Kim et al, 2005 ; King et al, 2010a ; Kishi et al, 2011 ; Kogachi et al, 2017 ; Koizumi et al, 2004 ; Lin et al, 2003 ; Nakatome et al, 2009 ; Nie et al, 2021 ; O’Neill et al, 2014 ; Sung et al, 2013 ; Tang et al, 2019 ; Tobias et al, 2010 ).…”

Women and Methamphetamine in Iran: A Report From the Most Populous Persian Gulf Country

“…The characteristics of male and female MA patients have been found different [4]. Female MA patients are less likely than men to be employed and married [5,6]; they also report greater severity of MA dependence than their male counterparts [4][5][6][7] and report more clinically relevant psychological problems such as depression and anxiety [7]. However, women appear to respond better to MA treatment than do men [6][7][8].…”

Asian American and Pacific Islander substance use treatment completion.

“…The present study attempts to fill two major gaps in the substance treatment service literature using outpatient data from the Treatment Episode Data Sets-Discharge (TEDS-D). The study explores demographics and treatment-related variables associated with treatment completion, as this type of investigation is a critical step to enhance the efficiency of substance treatment services (Han, Lin, Wu, & Hser, 2016; Okamoto, Kulis, Helm, Lauricella, & Valdez, 2016; Steinka-Fry et al, 2017). AAPI recognition is important in filling the gap in the literature because AAPI populations have been understudied in research on substance use treatment due to small sample sizes or removal of AAPI responses from analyses (Strada, Donohue, & Lefforge, 2009).…”