Screening Systematically, Treatment Can Curb Opioid Misuse



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July 16 (UPI) – Opioid abuse, as well as related increases in HIV, hepatitis C, and other infections, may be reduced
According to the new recommendations, systematic screening and treatment in search of other services.

The National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine made five recommendations in an article published Friday in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine. "Treatment can save lives," said Dr. Todd Korthuis, director of addiction medicine at the School of Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University, in a press release. "The national opioid epidemic may change if we accept opioid use disorder as a chronic condition that requires treatment rather than a moral problem or the outcome of a disease." weak will. "

The OHSU regularly reviews and treats patients who abuse opioids. for other services, partly through a service called IMPACT Project, Improvement Team addiction care. The project includes doctors, social workers, mentors and others who meet in-patients for addiction problems and start addiction treatment while in hospital.

The workshop looked at how more people are turning to injecting drug use. This has resulted in an increase in life-threatening infections of the skin, joints, blood, bones and other areas.

For these serious infections, hospital treatments are expensive and time consuming, according to the researchers. In addition, they noted "significant morbidity and a heavy financial toll on the health care system".

Most hospital staff do not routinely deal with substance abuse as the main cause, according to the researchers.

who manage such infections offer a potential way to engage people in the treatment of opioid use disorder, "wrote the researchers. "However, few providers and hospitals treating such infections have the necessary resources and capabilities."

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