A case series examining the efficacy of gabapentin as a substitution therapy for the treatment of pregabalin use disorder.

Gabapentinoids are ligands of a brain calcium channel, which are approved for different indications, including epilepsy, neuropathic pain, or generalized anxiety disorder. Among gabapentinoids, pregabalin has been increasingly associated with a risk of pregabalin use disorder (PUD). To date, there is no recommended medical treatment for PUD.

National impact of a constraining regulatory framework on pregabalin dispensations in France, 2020-2022.

Background: Pregabalin is a drug approved for neuropathic pain, epilepsy and general anxiety disorder. However, pregabalin is also an increasing cause of diversion and misuse, and, for this reason, the French health authorities have decided in 2021 to classify it as a narcotic drug, requiring secured prescription pads. Our study aimed to evaluate the impact of this measure on pregabalin dispensation patterns.

Characteristics of patients who are initiated on long-acting buprenorphine (Buvidal®) in France: A retrospective cross-sectional study.

Aim: The long-acting buprenorphine Buvidal® is a recent type of opioid agonist treatment (OAT) used for opioid use disorder (OUD). It was initially suggested to preferentially use Buvidal® for specific OUD populations, including people in prison, or patients in recovery and on sublingual buprenorphine. We conducted a national study to examine whether the profile of patients treated with Buvidal® in France matched these initial recommendations.

Comparing methadone policy and practice in France and the US: Implications for US policy reform.

Despite being among the most effective treatments for opioid use disorder, methadone is largely unavailable in the United States, due primarily to federal and other policies that limit its availability and regulate clinical decisions about doses, visit frequency, and drug testing. There is unprecedented momentum to change decades-old US methadone policies. Yet uncertainty remains as to whether reforms will be adopted and how policies will be implemented.

Patterns and determinants of cannabis use in youth visiting an urban emergency department in France.

Background: Cannabis use frequently starts during adolescence and young adulthood and can induce psychosocial and health consequences. Young people constitute hard-to-reach populations. Emergency departments could constitute a key care setting to identify cannabis use and its consequences among young people.

Willingness to use a drug consumption room among people who use drugs in Lyon, France, a city with no open scene of drug use (the TRABOUL survey).

Background: Drug consumption rooms (DCRs) have been developed in cities with open drug scenes, with the aim to reduce drug-related harm. In Lyon, France's second-largest city, there is no distinct drug use area, which raised doubts regarding the need for a DCR.

Methods: We conducted a face-to-face survey of 264 people who use drugs (PWUDs), recruited in harm reduction or addiction treatment centers, in the streets or in squats.

Screening problematic use of substances among young subjects attending an emergency department, and subsequent treatment seeking.

Introduction: Young individuals constitute a key population for the screening of problematic use of substances (PUS), but they are not likely to seek support and are hard to reach. Targeted screening programs should thus be developed in the places of care they may attend for other reasons, including emergency departments (EDs). We aimed to explore the factors associated with PUS in young people attending an ED; we measured the subsequent access to addiction care after ED screening.

Proportion and conditions of use of intranasal take-home naloxone kits: A retrospective study in two French outpatient addiction centers, 2016-2020.

Background: Take-home naloxone (THN) helps to revert the medical consequences of an opioid overdose among people who use drugs (PWUD). In France, an intranasal THN was available from July 2016 to Dec 2020, which was directly dispensed in addiction centers, after a specific education program. However, this intranasal THN was subsequently removed from the market.

Gabapentinoid use in French most precarious populations: Insight from Lyon Permanent Access to Healthcare (PASS) units, 2016-1Q2021.

Background: Gabapentinoids (i.e., gabapentin and pregabalin) are medications approved for epilepsy, chronic pain, or generalized anxiety disorder.

Factors of Interest in Extended-Release Buprenorphine: Comparisons Between Incarcerated and Non-Incarcerated Patients with Opioid Use Disorder.

Purpose: Extended-release buprenorphine (XR-BUP) covers a range of formulations of buprenorphine-based treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD) that release the medication over a period of one week, one month, or six months. OUD is particularly prevalent among incarcerated populations, and previous findings have shown that incarcerated subjects were not less interested in XR-BUP than non-incarcerated subjects. However, no study has ever investigated whether the factors of interest in XR-BUP were similar in incarcerated and non-incarcerated populations.

Validation of the Opioid Overdose Knowledge (OOKS) and Attitudes (OOAS) Scales in French, Spanish, and German Languages, among a Sample of Opioid Users.

Introduction: Improving the knowledge and attitudes of people facing an opioid overdose is one of the key prevention measures for reducing overdose occurrence and severity. In this respect, the Opioid Overdose Knowledge Scale (OOKS) and Opioid Overdose Attitudes Scale (OOAS) have been developed and validated in English to assess and improve knowledge and attitudes of opioid users and their families and care providers, in case of an overdose. Here, the OOKS and OOAS scales have been translated into French, Spanish, and German, and the different versions of the 2 scales have been assessed regarding their psychometric properties.

Determinants of interest in extended-released buprenorphine: A survey among 366 French patients treated with buprenorphine or methadone.

Aim: To explore the factors determining the interest in extended-release buprenorphine (XR-BUP) injections among patients receiving opioid agonist treatment (OAT) in France.

Methods: 366 patients receiving OAT for opioid use disorder, recruited in 66 French centers, were interviewed from 12/2018 to 05/2019. A structured questionnaire assessed their interest in XR-BUP using a [1-10] Likert scale.

Prolonged-release buprenorphine formulations: Perspectives for clinical practice.

Buprenorphine and methadone are the two main opioid agonist treatments approved for opioid use disorder. Buprenorphine is a partial agonist of the mu opioid receptors, which has been merely available through sublingual form until now. In practice, the use of buprenorphine is smoother than that of methadone, and it induces reduced risks of overdose.

[Prolonged-release buprenorphine formulations: Perspectives for clinical practice].

Buprenorphine and methadone are the two main opioids agonist treatments approved for opioid use disorder. Buprenorphine is a partial agonist of the mu-opioid receptors, which has been merely available through sublingual form until now. In practice, the use of buprenorphine is smoother than that of methadone, and it induces reduced risks of overdose.

[Feedback from two French addiction centers and national survey on the intranasal naloxone (Nalscue) in the prevention of opioid overdoses].

Objective: France has temporarily authorized addictology centers to use a form of intranasal naloxone (Nalscue) to prevent opioid overdoses. The objectives of this work are to present both the characteristics of the patients included in this device in two hospitals centers and the results of the national survey on addiction center's contribution to this new risk reduction tool.

Methods: Patient data are those requested under Nalscue study (inclusion period July 2016 to January 2018).