Initiating buprenorphine treatment for hospitalized patients with opioid dependence: A case series

Abstract

Background and Objectives Opioid dependent patients are hospitalized frequently. We aimed to determine if initiation of buprenorphine treatment during hospitalization facilitates entry into treatment following discharge. Methods Retrospective case series (n = 47). Results Twenty‐two (46.8%) patients successfully initiated buprenorphine treatment within 2 months of discharge. Those patients obtaining a referral to a specific program were more successful in continuing treatment, but this difference did not reach statistical significance (59.1% vs 39.1%, p = 0.18). Discussion and Conclusions Hospitalization may be an important opportunity to engage opioid dependent patients to initiate buprenorphine treatment. Scientific Significance This study provides provisional support for utilizing buprenorphine for hospitalized patients. (Am J Addict 2015;24:10–14)

U.S. National 90-Day Readmissions After Opioid Overdose Discharge

“…24,25 Previous research suggests inpatient-initiated MAT can help some opioid use disorder inpatients initiate treatment programs following discharge. 26 MAT integration in primary care settings aims to treat SUD before overdose. 27 …”

Medication‐assisted treatment for hospitalized patients with intravenous‐drug‐use related infective endocarditis

“…Additionally, office‐based opioid treatment may be more accessible for patients compared to methadone maintenance. Indeed, a number of studies now demonstrate that initiation of buprenorphine in the hospital or emergency room settings facilitates entry into substance abuse treatment . For example, in a study of 67 subjects initiated on buprenorphine in a general hospital and given a bridging prescription, 72.2% successfully initiated treatment following discharge .…”

“…Prior research suggests initiation of MAT in the hospital or emergency room setting facilitates entry into treatment following discharge . However, research on the use of MAT for hospitalized IDU‐IE patients is limited.…”

Role of the Hospital in the 21st Century Opioid Overdose Epidemic: The Addiction Medicine Consult Service

“…Today, there is a renewed interest in treating OUD, moving beyond withdrawal management, during acute hospitalization. Over the last decade, the primary literature base for the treatment of OUD and SUD includes care delivery reviews and checklists (Noska, Mohan, Wakeman, Rich, & Boutwell, 2015;Sharma, Lamba, Cauderella, Guimond, & Bayoumi, 2017;Thakarar, Weinstein, & Walley, 2016;Theisen-Toupal, Ronan, Moore, & Rosenthal, 2017;Weinstein, Wakeman, & Nolan, 2018), an implementation case study (Englander et al, 2017), retrospective cohort studies (Nordeck et al, 2018;Suzuki et al, 2015), single-site prospective evaluations (Trowbridge et al, 2017;Wakeman, Metlay, Chang, Herman, & Rigotti, 2017) and one clinical trial (Liebschutz et al, 2014). The literature suggests that care delivery for patients with SUDs in the acute care context is needed, possible, and effective.…”