Release Date
Two new articles and a commentary have been published in the Winter 2017 issue of Journal of Global Drug Policy and Practice (Volume 11 Issue 1).
An Analysis of the Data on the Effectiveness of Policies in Controlling Production of Illicit Narcotics in Afghanistan,
M. Reza Amirkhizi, PhD.
M. Reza Amirkhizi, PhD.
Dr. Amirkhizi is a lecturer of international law and politics at the University of California, Irvine. His experience with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and Middle East (UNODC) diplomacy render a valuable and unique perspective on the situation of opium production in Afghanistan. The continued cultivation of opium in Afghanistan is quite concerning given its detrimental effect on the security, health and welfare of its citizens and also considering the international support to replace current opium cultivation practices with equally lucrative agricultural alternatives.
Robert L. DuPont, MD (corresponding author), Katherine Garcia-Rosales, BS, Corinne L.
Shea, MA, Helen DuPont, MBA, Michael D. Campbell, PhD, George Kolodner, MD, Eric D.
Wish, PhD
The second article, by researchers at IBH and CESAR and the Medical Director of the Komac Outpatient RecoveryCenters, discusses the results of an analyses of 157 patients prescribed buprenorphine for opioid use disorders by a private, multi-site treatment program located in the Washington, DC/Baltimore region. From the Abstract: Forty-three percent reported ever using only prescription opioids, 51% had used prescription opioids + heroin and 6% used heroin but no prescription opioids. Differences existed among the patients who used prescription opioids only and those who used prescription opioids + heroin. Prescription opioid + heroin users were more likely to misuse other drugs, to initiate drug use earlier, and to engage in polydrug use. Findings suggest that efforts to reduce heroin use among prescription opioid users would be well-served by identifying patients with a prior history of polydrug use and early nonmedical drug use.
Journal commentary: Medical Marijuana in Patients Prescribed Opioids: A Cloud of Uncertainty
William C. Becker, MD VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT, and Jeanette M. Tetrault, MD, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
Reprinted with permission from the Mayo Clinic Proceedings, the commentary reveals the conundrum physicians may find themselves in when treating patients with long-term opioid pain management who are concurrently using “medical” marijuana. Consideration of the potential harms that marijuana may cause the patient, unknown potency levels, non-existing standardized dosing information and the conflicting legal issues are just a few of the concerns doctors must address as they weigh the risks of treating these individuals.
Additional research articles, policy and news can be found in this issue of Journal of Global Drug Policy and Practice.
