(Press-News.org) While mobile methadone units make a difference in expanding methadone use for patients with opioid addictions, they are likely to be most impactful in rural areas, according to new research.
The research was published today in Health Services Research and focused on the impact of adding new treatment services exclusively to rural Louisiana, where like in many other remote parts of the country, there are limited healthcare infrastructures and barriers to transportation. They compared this data to the impact of adding units statewide, where people have more access to traditional healthcare facilities.
The research team used predictive modeling approaches to estimate new methadone uptake following a hypothetical expansion of mobile methadone in the state. They looked specifically at cases where mobile methadone operators could choose their operation locations freely and in a separate instance where they were restricted to serving rural areas to identify potential geographic differences in their effectiveness.
“Several interconnected factors play a role in the prevalence of opioid use disorders in rural areas and this includes limited access to healthcare services, which is why we wanted to compare this data to help with decision-making when allocating resources to combat this public health crisis,” says first author Jason Gibbons, PhD, assistant professor and a health economist in the Colorado School of Public Health at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.
The research finds that adding ten units exclusively to rural Louisiana was associated with a 13 percentage point increase in Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) treatment rates in rural zip codes.
Adding the same number of units across the state, not exclusively in rural areas, was predicted to increase MOUD treatment rates in Louisiana by up to nearly three percentage points.
“We find significant geographic variation in the impact of mobile methadone implementation, which means careful location planning will be required to maximize their benefit in other communities,” Gibbons says.
The researchers also predict that adding ten units to rural communities could provide nearly 20 percent of all beneficiaries residing in rural areas being treated with methadone to be around 24 miles closer to a methadone treatment provider. Their model also suggests that most patients will only be willing to travel up to 50 miles for methadone services, highlighting the potential for mobile units to close historical access gaps to methadone treatment.
To study the impact, the researchers looked at 43,341 Louisiana Medicaid patients with a diagnosis of opioid dependence identified in the Medicaid claims data between 2020 and 2021.
They then simulated the impact of mobile methadone units in Louisiana using two approaches: a “Poisson regression approach,” which involved predicting the number of opioid use disorder patients that might use methadone at mobile locations based on the underlying association between methadone use and proximity to a brick-and-mortar methadone clinic and a “policy approach,” which leveraged local treatment uptake rates following the expansion of methadone coverage to Louisiana Medicaid beneficiaries in 2020 to estimate methadone use following mobile unit implementation.
The analysis revealed mobile methadone would have a distinct impact in rural communities if these locations were prioritized and recommended operators collaborate with state and local policymakers regarding where to locate them to help maximize their impact.
About the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus is a world-class medical destination at the forefront of transformative science, medicine, education and patient care. The campus encompasses the University of Colorado health professional schools, more than 60 centers and institutes, and two nationally ranked independent hospitals - UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital and Children's Hospital Colorado - that treat more than two million adult and pediatric patients each year. Innovative, interconnected and highly collaborative, the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus delivers life-changing treatments, patient care and professional training and conducts world-renowned research fueled by over $704 million in research grants. For more information, visit www.cuanschutz.edu.
About the Colorado School of Public Health
The Colorado School of Public Health is one of the only tri-institutional public health schools in the country. We leverage the power of three leading institutions—the University of Colorado (CU) Anschutz Medical Campus, Colorado State University (CSU), and the University of Northern Colorado (UNC) —to advance public health locally, nationally, and globally. Collectively, the School’s mission is to promote the physical, mental, social, and environmental health of people and communities. Through education, population-based research, and community service, the Colorado School of Public Health brings together institutions, agencies, and diverse populations. For more information, visit: https://coloradosph.cuanschutz.edu.
END
New research shows mobile methadone units are most impactful in rural areas
The research highlights the importance of expanding access to opioid treatments in remote locations
2024-01-09
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
PNNL kicks off multi-year energy storage, scientific discovery collaboration with Microsoft
2024-01-09
The urgent need to meet global clean energy goals has world leaders searching for faster solutions. To meet that call, the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has teamed with Microsoft to use high-performance computing in the cloud and advanced artificial intelligence to accelerate scientific discovery on a scale not previously demonstrated. The initial focus of the partnership is chemistry and materials science—two scientific fields that underpin solutions to global energy challenges.
“The intersection of AI, cloud and high-performance computing, along with human scientists, we believe is key to accelerating the path to meaningful scientific ...
The hidden identity of leukemia
2024-01-09
Researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) use various technologies to better characterize a rare form of leukemia on the molecular level
Tokyo, Japan – Leukemia is a common term used to refer to a form of blood cancer. However, there are different types of leukemia depending on the cell type involved. One unique form is myeloid/natural killer (NK) cell precursor acute leukemia (MNKPL). Because of its rarity, there is no consensus on the specific characteristics needed to clinically identify this disease. In a recent article ...
Unique framework of tin bimetal organic compound facilitates stable lithium-ion storage
2024-01-09
Battery capacity is one of the primary bottlenecks in efficient renewable energy storage and significant reductions in carbon emissions. As a battery anode that releases electrons in a lithium-ion battery (LIB), tin (Sn) and Sn-mixture alloys could theoretically store more energy at a higher density than more common carbon-based anodes. Pairing a Sn-Ti bimetal element with inexpensive ethylene glycol (Sn-Ti-EG) mitigated many of the challenges of using Sn as an anode material and produced an inexpensive LIB with excellent storage and performance characteristics.
Sn and Sn alloys, or mixture of another metal with Sn, could outperform other anode materials ...
Attribution of the extreme drought in eastern China in 2022 and its future risk
2024-01-09
Eastern China was hit by an extreme drought in summer 2022 that caused severe economic and agricultural damage. The event has attracted a great deal of attention not only because of its severe intensity and huge social impacts, but also because it is yet another example within the hot topic of the influence of anthropogenic forcing induced warming on drought extremes and how they might change under different scenarios of continued warming in the future.
Recently, Atmospheric and Oceanic Science Letters published ...
Increasing levels of "hype" language in grant applications and publications
2024-01-09
Tsukuba, Japan—The success of scientific endeavors often depends on support from public research grants. Successful applicants increasingly describe their proposed research using promotional language ("hype"); however, it remains unclear whether they use hype in their subsequent research publications.
A research team led by the University of Tsukuba analyzed all published research abstracts of projects funded by the US National Institute of Health (NIH) from 1985 to 2020. The analysis covered 139 hype adjectives emphasizing significance ...
Is spa water a fossil of water? Uncover the real ultra-deep water cycles
2024-01-09
Tsukuba, Japan—Although most natural spa waters primarily originate from atmospheric precipitation, such as rain and snow (known as meteoric water), the present study explored the unique qualities of certain spa waters. By analyzing the stable isotope compositions of hydrogen and oxygen in water molecules, researchers have identified distinct characteristics that indicate the presence of long-trapped lithospheric water. They traced the isotopic evolution of this water through sophisticated numerical modeling, and found that various types of water, including those found deep beneath the ...
Light measurement enables estimation of the chemical attributes of spice extracts
2024-01-09
Tsukuba, Japan—Spices and other plant-derived products contain many active components, such as polyphenols and flavonoids. However, even the slightest variations in conditions can considerably affect the extraction efficiency of these active components, posing challenges in determining the exact quantity of active components in the extract solution.
In this study, researchers comprehensively measured the fluorescence emitted by polyphenols and flavonoids and analyzed the acquired data using machine learning methods. ...
Nemours Children’s Health researchers find Zika virus is effective when used to treat a type of childhood cancer in mice
2024-01-09
ORLANDO, Fla. (Jan. 9, 2024) — Injecting neuroblastoma tumors with Zika virus shrank or eliminated those tumors in studies with mice, suggesting that the virus could someday serve as an effective cancer therapy, according to a study led by Nemours Children’s Health researchers and published today in Cancer Research Communications, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
Neuroblastoma is a rare childhood cancer that typically develops in the sympathetic nervous system or the adrenal glands. Only 700 to 800 cases are diagnosed each year in the United States, accounting for ...
Multidisciplinary panel advocates for increased adoption of Intravascular Ultrasound (IVUS) in peripheral vascular interventions
2024-01-09
EMBARGOED UNTIL 10:00 AM ET ON JANUARY 9, 2024
WASHINGTON (January 9, 2024) – Proceedings from an expert consensus roundtable that discussed the benefits of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) in lower extremity revascularization procedures were released today in the Journal of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (JSCAI), Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology (JVIR), and Journal of Vascular Surgery - Vascular Insights.
The roundtable focused on the current challenges in diagnosing ...
Analysis of rowing force of the water strider middle leg by direct measurement using a bio-appropriating probe and by indirect measurement using image analysis
2024-01-09
A research paper by scientists at the Ibaraki University analyzed the rowing force of the water strider middle leg by direct measurement using a bio-appropriating probe and by indirect measurement using image analysis.
The new research paper, published on Nov. 17 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, reported the rowing force of water striders obtained by direct and indirect measurements, and analyzed the maximum force arrival time and the middle leg angular velocity of the direct and indirect force measurements.
“Rowing force of the middle leg of a water ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
New register opens to crown Champion Trees across the U.S.
A unified approach to health data exchange
New superconductor with hallmark of unconventional superconductivity discovered
Global HIV study finds that cardiovascular risk models underestimate for key populations
New study offers insights into how populations conform or go against the crowd
Development of a high-performance AI device utilizing ion-controlled spin wave interference in magnetic materials
WashU researchers map individual brain dynamics
Technology for oxidizing atmospheric methane won’t help the climate
US Department of Energy announces Early Career Research Program for FY 2025
PECASE winners: 3 UVA engineering professors receive presidential early career awards
‘Turn on the lights’: DAVD display helps navy divers navigate undersea conditions
MSU researcher’s breakthrough model sheds light on solar storms and space weather
Nebraska psychology professor recognized with Presidential Early Career Award
New data shows how ‘rage giving’ boosted immigrant-serving nonprofits during the first Trump Administration
Unique characteristics of a rare liver cancer identified as clinical trial of new treatment begins
From lab to field: CABBI pipeline delivers oil-rich sorghum
Stem cell therapy jumpstarts brain recovery after stroke
Polymer editing can upcycle waste into higher-performance plastics
Research on past hurricanes aims to reduce future risk
UT Health San Antonio, UTSA researchers receive prestigious 2025 Hill Prizes for medicine and technology
Panorama of our nearest galactic neighbor unveils hundreds of millions of stars
A chain reaction: HIV vaccines can lead to antibodies against antibodies
Bacteria in polymers form cables that grow into living gels
Rotavirus protein NSP4 manipulates gastrointestinal disease severity
‘Ding-dong:’ A study finds specific neurons with an immune doorbell
A major advance in biology combines DNA and RNA and could revolutionize cancer treatments
Neutrophil elastase as a predictor of delivery in pregnant women with preterm labor
NIH to lead implementation of National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act
Growth of private equity and hospital consolidation in primary care and price implications
Online advertising of compounded glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists
[Press-News.org] New research shows mobile methadone units are most impactful in rural areasThe research highlights the importance of expanding access to opioid treatments in remote locations