AIMS: To estimate and test the difference in rates of violent and non-violent crime during medicated and non-medicated methadone treatment episodes. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: The study involved linkage of population level administrative data (health and justice) for all individuals (n = 14 530) in British Columbia, Canada with a history of conviction and who filled a methadone prescription between 1 January 1998 and 31 March 2015. Methadone maintenance treatment was the primary independent variable and was treated as a time-varying exposure. Each participant's follow-up (mean: 8 years) was divided into medicated (methadone was dispensed) and non-medicated (methadone was not dispensed) periods with mean durations of 3.3 and 4.6 years, respectively. MEASUREMENTS: Socio-demographics of participants were examined along with the main outcomes of violent and non-violent offences. FINDINGS: During the first 2 years of treatment (≤ 2.0 years), periods in which methadone was dispensed were associated with a 33% lower rate of violent crime [0.67 adjusted hazard ratio (AHR), 95% confidence intervals (CI) = 0.59, 0.76] and a 35% lower rate of non-violent crime (0.65 AHR, 95% CI = 0.62, 0.69) compared with non-medicated periods. This equates to a risk difference of 3.6 (95% CI = 2.6, 4.4) and 37.2 (95% CI = 33.0, 40.4) fewer violent and non-violent offences per 100 person-years, respectively. Significant but smaller protective effects of dispensed methadone were observed across longer treatment intervals (2.0 to ≤ 5.0 years, 5.0 to ≤ 10.0 years). CONCLUSIONS: Among a cohort of Canadian offenders, rates of violent and non-violent offending were lower during periods when individuals were dispensed methadone compared with periods in which they were not dispensed methadone.
AIMS: To estimate and test the difference in rates of violent and non-violent crime during medicated and non-medicated methadone treatment episodes. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: The study involved linkage of population level administrative data (health and justice) for all individuals (n = 14 530) in British Columbia, Canada with a history of conviction and who filled a methadone prescription between 1 January 1998 and 31 March 2015. Methadone maintenance treatment was the primary independent variable and was treated as a time-varying exposure. Each participant's follow-up (mean: 8 years) was divided into medicated (methadone was dispensed) and non-medicated (methadone was not dispensed) periods with mean durations of 3.3 and 4.6 years, respectively. MEASUREMENTS: Socio-demographics of participants were examined along with the main outcomes of violent and non-violent offences. FINDINGS: During the first 2 years of treatment (≤ 2.0 years), periods in which methadone was dispensed were associated with a 33% lower rate of violent crime [0.67 adjusted hazard ratio (AHR), 95% confidence intervals (CI) = 0.59, 0.76] and a 35% lower rate of non-violent crime (0.65 AHR, 95% CI = 0.62, 0.69) compared with non-medicated periods. This equates to a risk difference of 3.6 (95% CI = 2.6, 4.4) and 37.2 (95% CI = 33.0, 40.4) fewer violent and non-violent offences per 100 person-years, respectively. Significant but smaller protective effects of dispensed methadone were observed across longer treatment intervals (2.0 to ≤ 5.0 years, 5.0 to ≤ 10.0 years). CONCLUSIONS: Among a cohort of Canadian offenders, rates of violent and non-violent offending were lower during periods when individuals were dispensed methadone compared with periods in which they were not dispensed methadone.
Authors: Elizabeth R Stevens; Kimberly A Nucifora; Holly Hagan; Ashly E Jordan; Jennifer Uyei; Bilal Khan; Kirk Dombrowski; Don des Jarlais; R Scott Braithwaite Journal: Clin Infect Dis Date: 2020-06-10 Impact factor: 9.079
Authors: Sarah Larney; Nicola Jones; David A Fiellin; Suzanne Nielsen; Matthew Hickman; Timothy Dobbins; Thomas Murphy; Robert Ali; Louisa Degenhardt Journal: Int J Epidemiol Date: 2021-01-23 Impact factor: 7.196
Authors: Andrea K Finlay; Erica Morse; Matthew Stimmel; Emmeline Taylor; Christine Timko; Alex H S Harris; David Smelson; Mengfei Yu; Jessica Blue-Howells; Ingrid A Binswanger Journal: J Gen Intern Med Date: 2020-06-24 Impact factor: 5.128
Authors: Erica Morse; Ingrid A Binswanger; Emmeline Taylor; Caroline Gray; Matthew Stimmel; Christine Timko; Alex H S Harris; David Smelson; Andrea K Finlay Journal: J Subst Abuse Treat Date: 2021-03-04
Authors: Natasa Gisev; Chrianna Bharat; Sarah Larney; Timothy Dobbins; Don Weatherburn; Matthew Hickman; Michael Farrell; Louisa Degenhardt Journal: Lancet Public Health Date: 2019-06-11
Authors: Sarah Larney; Matthew Hickman; David A Fiellin; Timothy Dobbins; Suzanne Nielsen; Nicola R Jones; Richard P Mattick; Robert Ali; Louisa Degenhardt Journal: BMJ Open Date: 2018-08-05 Impact factor: 2.692