| 1. |
- Andersson, Lisa
(författare)
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Problematisk opioidanvändning : om opioidrelaterade dödsfall och LARO i södra Sverige
- 2021
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Problematic opioid use constitutes an extensive global problem. Correspondingly, opioid-related mortality is high and has increased in several Western countries, including Sweden, during the 2000s. In Sweden, the most effective treatment method, opioid substitution treatment (OST), was for a long time limited with respect to the number of patients. The treatment was also characterized by strict rules and conducted in a high-threshold manner, which has meant that it has not been fully appealing to people with problematic opioid use. Therefore, in Skåne County in southern Sweden, patient choice of treatment provider was introduced for OST in 2014 with the intention to increase the number of treatment places and strengthen patient empowerment. The overall aims of this thesis are (1) to investigate opioid-related deaths in Skåne with a focus on contact with care-providing authorities and in relation to increased access to OST, and (2) to examine patients’ and clinic managers’ attitudes towards the introduction of the patient choice reform for OST and their views of the reform's objectives of increased accessibility to OST and strengthening patients' empowerment and influence over their treatment.The four papers in this thesis are based on two research projects with various empiric material. Paper I and II are based on data on opioid overdose deaths from a period of two years before and two years following the introduction of the patient choice reform. Forensic data regarding the presence of various substances and which opioid caused the death, as well as demographic data and information on contact with care-providing authorities (health care, social services, and the Prison and Probation Service), were collected. Paper I examines clinical background and contact with care-providing authorities of opioid-related fatalities, as well as differences with regard to which opioid caused the death. Paper II examines the possible impact of the intervention on the development of opioid-related deaths in the region. National mortality data were also used in this study to investigate the development in Skåne compared to the rest of Sweden. The second research project focused on stakeholders’ views on the implementation of the patient choice reform. Paper III includes interviews with 33 OST patients, and paper IV consists of interviews with the managers of all OST clinics in Skåne. The results from paper I show that of the 180 deceased in opioid overdose included in the study, almost 90 per cent had been in contact with one of the examined care-providing authorities during the year prior to death. Few differences appeared with regard to which opioid contributed to the death. Paper II indicates that there has been no significant change in opioid-related deaths in Skåne after the patient choice reform and increased access to OST. An analysis on national mortality data however showed a significant yearly decrease in drug-related deaths in Skåne compared to other Swedish counties in the years following the reform (2015–2017). No change was noted in deaths related to methadone or buprenorphine in Skåne. The proportion of deaths among patients in OST increased after the introduction of the reform. The third paper indicates that patients in OST in Skåne have gained increased empowerment and influence over their treatment since the patient choice reform was introduced. Patients especially appreciated the knowledge that they could make an exit and change clinics if they so wished, even if they so far had chosen not to. In paper IV, the clinic managers were largely positive to the trend towards increased influence for patients over their treatment situation. They were more critical of the fact that there was no major differentiation between treatment providers, and that the competition that arose after the patient choice reform mainly was related to prescribing benzodiazepines.Conclusions drawn from the papers in this thesis include that patient choice of treatment provider can be viewed as a means of empowerment for patients in OST, which was regarded as positive by both patients and treatment providers. The limitations of such a system for providing OST that emerged were lack of diversity between clinics and that the competition between treatment providers largely comprised of differing views on the prescription of benzodiazepines. Further, improved access to low-threshold OST in Skåne was not associated with an increased overdose death-rate. The result that people who died from opioid overdose to a very large extent are known to society’s care-providing authorities suggests that there are considerable opportunities to reach people with problematic opioid use for therapeutic and harm reducing measures such as low-threshold OST and take-home naloxone.
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| 2. |
- Monwell, Bodil
(författare)
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En dyster parentes – opiatregeln i svensk LARO-behandling 2010–2016
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Opioids are well documented to arouse euphoria, relieve pain, and to have a high dependency potential. Opioid dependence is a serious chronic condition with a high risk of extensive worsened health, relapse and premature death.Opioid maintenance treatment (OMT) is well researched and has strong scientific support. In Sweden, OMT over time was subjected to polarised and infected political debate and has been strictly regulated by the National Board of Health and Welfare (NBHW). During 2010–2016 NBHW redefined the diagnostic concept of “opiate dependence” in the regulation SOSFS 2009:27. Dependence to only three opioids: heroin, opium or morphine, could give eligibility to OMT (here called the “opiate rule”). The purpose stated was to prevent those dependent to other opioides, e.g. buprenorphine,from receiving OMT. Applicants with severe opioid dependence were thereby divided into two subgroups: those with “opiate” dependence related to heroin, morphine or opium, and those with opioid dependence who lacked documentation in relation to the three opiates. The question is whether there were differences between these groups concerning problem severity or substance-related diagnostics that could justify differences in access to OMT?A population (n = 127) actualised for OMT during 2005-2011 in Jönköping County is studied regarding severity of problems, diagnostics and trajectories in and out of treatment. In order to provide precise drug use data, a cognitive tool for taking anamnestic information, called the Drug List, was developed.In Study I, using the Addiction Severity Index, the two groups were found to be quite similar in severity of health problems, social situation and drug problems, including overdoses and injections.In Study II, the Drug List was found to be superior to a traditional way of taking anamnestic data, more sensitive and giving more precise data, without taking more time. Validity was shown in relation to faked drugs.In Study III, using a structured diagnostic interview, ADDIS, with the Drug List, showed that both two groups qualified for severe opioid dependence, that opiates and other opioids had contributed equally to the development of opioid dependency, and that the two groups also had similar additional substance dependence problems.Study IV investigated how “the opiate rule” affected practice by interviewing representatives of OMT clinics as well as a representative of a users’ association. The regulation created dilemmas for clinics as well as for users. Users developed a strategy of getting "negative merits" for being eligible to OMT. Clinicians developed strategies to find ways “around” the regulation in order to admit patients in OMT.Study V followed those who had applied for OMT and found four trajectory subgroups – those denied OMT, those discharged, those readmitted, and those who remained in treatment. The study provides evidence for a more positive development being related to more involvment in OMT concerning health, social situation as well as substance use problems. Being denied or discharged is related to increased risks of a negative development.The thesis conclude that there was no support for dividing applicants according to “the opiate rule”. The purpose of top-down control using regulations, is to guarantee uniform and knowledge-based care. In this case the regulation had negative effects in these respects, increasing risks for the applicants, and lost credibility from the profession. The opiate rule in SOSFS 2009:27 is therefore a dismal parenthesis in the history of OMT in Sweden, and could be studied to prevent similar mistakes in the future.
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| 3. |
- Williamson, Alice, et al.
(författare)
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Genome-wide association study and functional characterization identifies candidate genes for insulin-stimulated glucose uptake
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nature Genetics. - : Springer Nature. - 1061-4036 .- 1546-1718. ; 55:6, s. 973-983
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Distinct tissue-specific mechanisms mediate insulin action in fasting and postprandial states. Previous genetic studies have largely focused on insulin resistance in the fasting state, where hepatic insulin action dominates. Here we studied genetic variants influencing insulin levels measured 2 h after a glucose challenge in >55,000 participants from three ancestry groups. We identified ten new loci (P < 5 × 10-8) not previously associated with postchallenge insulin resistance, eight of which were shown to share their genetic architecture with type 2 diabetes in colocalization analyses. We investigated candidate genes at a subset of associated loci in cultured cells and identified nine candidate genes newly implicated in the expression or trafficking of GLUT4, the key glucose transporter in postprandial glucose uptake in muscle and fat. By focusing on postprandial insulin resistance, we highlighted the mechanisms of action at type 2 diabetes loci that are not adequately captured by studies of fasting glycemic traits.
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