Fares Qeadan1, Nana Akofua Mensah2, Benjamin Tingey2, Rona Bern2, Tracy Rees2, Erin Fanning Madden3, Christina A Porucznik2, Kevin English4, Trenton Honda2. 1. Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA. fares.qeadan@utah.edu. 2. Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA. 3. Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA. 4. Albuquerque Area Southwest Tribal Epidemiology Center, Albuquerque, NM, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the world presents an unprecedented challenge to public health inequities. People who use opioids may be a vulnerable group disproportionately impacted by the current pandemic, however, the limited prior research in this area makes it unclear whether COVID-19 and opioid use outcomes may be related, and whether other environmental and socioeconomic factors might play a role in explaining COVID-19 mortality. The objective of this study is to evaluate the association between opioid-related mortality and COVID-19 mortality across U.S. counties. METHODS: Data from 3142 counties across the U.S. were used to model the cumulative count of deaths due to COVID-19 up to June 2, 2020. A multivariable negative-binomial regression model was employed to evaluate the adjusted COVID-19 mortality rate ratios (aMRR). RESULTS: After controlling for covariates, counties with higher rates of opioid-related mortality per 100,000 persons were found to be significantly associated with higher rates of COVID-19 mortality (aMRR: 1.0134; 95% CI [1.0054, 1.0214]; P = 0.001). Counties with higher average daily Particulate Matter (PM2.5) exposure also saw significantly higher rates of COVID-19 mortality. Analyses revealed rural counties, counties with higher percentages of non-Hispanic whites, and counties with increased average maximum temperatures are significantly associated with lower mortality rates from COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates need for public health efforts in hard hit COVID-19 regions to also focus prevention efforts on overdose risk among people who use opioids. Future studies using individual-level data are needed to allow for detailed inferences.
BACKGROUND: The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the world presents an unprecedented challenge to public health inequities. People who use opioids may be a vulnerable group disproportionately impacted by the current pandemic, however, the limited prior research in this area makes it unclear whether COVID-19 and opioid use outcomes may be related, and whether other environmental and socioeconomic factors might play a role in explaining COVID-19mortality. The objective of this study is to evaluate the association between opioid-related mortality and COVID-19mortality across U.S. counties. METHODS: Data from 3142 counties across the U.S. were used to model the cumulative count of deaths due to COVID-19 up to June 2, 2020. A multivariable negative-binomial regression model was employed to evaluate the adjusted COVID-19mortality rate ratios (aMRR). RESULTS: After controlling for covariates, counties with higher rates of opioid-related mortality per 100,000 persons were found to be significantly associated with higher rates of COVID-19mortality (aMRR: 1.0134; 95% CI [1.0054, 1.0214]; P = 0.001). Counties with higher average daily Particulate Matter (PM2.5) exposure also saw significantly higher rates of COVID-19mortality. Analyses revealed rural counties, counties with higher percentages of non-Hispanic whites, and counties with increased average maximum temperatures are significantly associated with lower mortality rates from COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates need for public health efforts in hard hit COVID-19 regions to also focus prevention efforts on overdose risk among people who use opioids. Future studies using individual-level data are needed to allow for detailed inferences.
Entities:
Keywords:
Air pollution; COVID-19; Ecological study; Health inequities; Mortality rate ratio; Opioids; Pandemic; Temperature
Authors: Gabriel Vallecillo; Francina Fonseca; Lina Oviedo; Xavier Durán; Ignacio Martinez; Alexandra García-Guix; Claudio Castillo; Marta Torrens; Santiago Llana; Albert Roquer; Maria de la Cabeza Martinez; Sandra Aguelo; Irene Canosa Journal: Drug Alcohol Depend Rep Date: 2022-01-15