Advances in opioid substitute treatment such as longacting injectable buprenorphine can lead to lifechanging outcomes and experiences, says the team at Via
THE LONG GAME
Buprenorphine was first licensed for medical use in the UK in 1978 as a painkiller. It was later approved for use in opioid use disorder( OUD) treatment in 1999. In 2018, a new long-acting buprenorphine injection was licensed in the UK for the treatment of OUD and it became available for clinical use in early 2019.
Via was the first state-funded treatment provider to offer longacting injectable buprenorphine( LAIB) in England and Wales. Here we hear from key stakeholders at Via and Liverpool John Moores University( LJMU) about their latest research into the predictors and outcomes of LAIB vs oral medication, and the life-changing impact LAIB can have on the people it’ s prescribed to.
Dr Yasir Abbasi, executive medical director at Via In 2019, Via worked with our commissioner in the London Borough of Redbridge to successfully pilot the use of long-acting injectable buprenorphine( LAIB).
‘ I believe [ LAIB ] represents a significant step forward in the treatment and recovery from opioid dependence. Since making this treatment available in Redbridge, the feedback from patients has exceeded expectations.’( Andrew Hardwick, integrated strategic commissioner, London Borough of Redbridge)
By 2023, we were successfully delivering LAIB across six localities, and therefore gathering valuable treatment data that could show the effectiveness and impact of using LAIB in community services. As part of Via’ s innovation and research unit, I was keen to explore how we could design an evaluation utilising this data and established a research partnership with Liverpool John Moores University.
Professor Cathy Montgomery, professor of psychopharmacology and health inequalities at Liverpool John Moores University‘ This is one of the first investigations of person-rated outcomes and demographic factors in people prescribed LAIB versus oral MOUD( medications for opioid use disorder)’( Montgomery, Abbasi, De Silva, et al, 2024).
IN OUR RESEARCH STUDY, WE AIMED TO EXPLORE
– the factors that influenced the likelihood of an individual being prescribed LAIB
– whether LAIB has a significant impact on people’ s wellbeing and quality of life.
We analysed the treatment data of 501 people accessing Via services between August 2022 and August 2023. Anonymised data was taken from six Via services, and we compared 235 individuals prescribed LAIB with 266 people receiving oral medication. To identify what factors predicted whether
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