Subject search results

Effectiveness bank home page. Opens new window Subject search results

You have found 209 entries. Starting with analyses of the most recently published documents, the list shows in orange the type of entry, year the original document was published (or if one of our own documents, the year last updated), and the type of file you will download when you click on the title. In blue is the document’s title followed by a brief description.

Click blue titles to view full text in a new window
Use the selectors at the bottom to turn to the next page in the list of documents
Re-order the list by the most recently added or updated entries or by the main topic addressed


If you have not found what you want you could:
Tab back to the Subject search page/tab to amend your original search.
Try a new search (clears your previous selection).
Instead try a free text search for documents which contain the words you specify.
Or try browsing back issues of the magazine or the more recent email bulletins.
Try the information services provided by partner agencies.
Tried everything? E-mail the Findings editor for help by clicking on this logo Drug and Alcohol Findings logo



DOCUMENT 2020 HTM file
Guidance on contingency planning for people who use drugs and COVID-19 (v1.0)

How can needle exchange services and opioid substitution therapy be safeguarded in the midst of a novel viral outbreak? Scottish Guidance considers potential disruptions to delivery, and suggests ways of ensuring continuity of services when best practice or ‘service as usual’ might be out of the question.

STUDY 2020 HTM file
Comparative effectiveness of different treatment pathways for opioid use disorder

How do different pathways for the treatment of problem opioid use compare under real-world conditions? For US patients with health insurance, opioid substitution therapy was associated with the greatest risk reduction. However, its protective effect may not be fully realised while federal and insurance plan restrictions continue to limit access to this treatment option.

STUDY 2019 HTM file
Criminal justice outcomes over 5 years after randomization to buprenorphine-naloxone or methadone treatment for opioid use disorder

Can a limited period of being prescribed opiate-type medications generate longer term reductions in the criminal behaviour of patients dependent on illegal opiates like heroin? And of the two main medications – buprenorphine and methadone – which performs best? It seems a key factor is how well they retain patients in treatment.

STUDY 2019 HTM file
Modelling the combined impact of interventions in averting deaths during a synthetic-opioid overdose epidemic

In the Canadian province of British Columbia there was a rapid rise in overdose deaths from 2015, leading to the declaration of a public health emergency in 2016. The response rested on three key interventions: take-home naloxone, opioid substitution therapy, and drug consumption rooms. The province’s highly detailed surveillance data offered an opportunity to estimate their collective and individual impacts on opioid overdose deaths.

STUDY 2019 HTM file
Efficacy and safety of a monthly buprenorphine depot injection for opioid use disorder: a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial

In the new form of extended-release injections with effects lasting a month, the opioid medication buprenorphine was found to suppress illegal opioid use more effectively than a placebo, reinforcing its promise as a possible “game-changer” in opiate addiction treatment.

STUDY 2019 HTM file
Efficacy and cost-effectiveness of an adjunctive personalised psychosocial intervention in treatment-resistant maintenance opioid agonist therapy: a pragmatic, open-label, randomised controlled trial

Instead of a set programme, a clinic in London tried offering methadone or buprenorphine patients still using heroin or cocaine a selection from a suite of well-supported psychological interventions tailored to the patient and then systematically re-tailored in the light of how they responded. It worked – but did it work well enough, and would the findings be replicated in more typical circumstances?

MATRIX CELL 2018 HTM file
Drug Treatment Matrix cell A3: Interventions; Medical treatment

Key studies on the effectiveness of medical interventions and treatment in medical settings.

STUDY 2018 HTM file
A randomized, open label trial of methadone continuation versus forced withdrawal in a combined US prison and jail: findings at 12 months post-release

From the USA, a rare randomised trial found in favour of continuing methadone maintenance when patients entered prison rather than compulsory withdrawal. The potential benefits were most apparent in the near-100% continuation of protective treatment during the highly overdose-prone weeks after leaving prison.

STUDY 2018 HTM file
The impact of buprenorphine and methadone on mortality: a primary care cohort study in the United Kingdom

Buprenorphine may be associated with a lower risk of mortality than methadone among people engaged in opioid substitution treatment – but is the pattern of short treatment duration in the UK preventing maximal impact at a population level?

DOCUMENT 2018 HTM file
Medications for opioid use disorder: for healthcare and addiction professionals, policymakers, patients, and families: Treatment Improvement Protocol: TIP 63

Expanding access to medication is an important public health strategy for tackling opioid use disorder, concludes US government agency guidelines. While some people stop using opioids without medication, many benefit from access to methadone, naltrexone, and buprenorphine for varying lengths of time, including lifelong treatment.


Select search results page

NEXT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21