read the full stories, and more, online
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
MILLIONS BEING PRESCRIBED
POTENTIALLY ADDICTIVE DRUGS
MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN ENGLAND are being prescribed
potentially addictive medications, according to the
findings of a major review by Public Health England (PHE).
Announced last year (DDN, February 2018, page 4),
the review looks at dependence and withdrawal issues
associated with five commonly prescribed classes of
medication – opioid pain medicine, benzodiazepines, ‘z’
drugs such as zopiclone, antidepressants and
gabapentinoids. It found that one in four adults – 11.5m
people – had been prescribed at least one of these in the
year to March 2018, with half of those on a prescription
having been continuously prescribed the drugs for at
least a year and up to 32 per cent for at least three years.
Benzodiazepines are not recommended for use lasting
more than a month, while opioids for chronic non-cancer
pain are known to be ineffective when used over the
long term.
Prescriptions for antidepressants and gabapentinoids
are on the rise, but those for opioids, benzodiazepines
and z drugs are all falling, the review found. There were,
however, wide variations in prescribing rates across
clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), with both
prescribing levels and length of prescriptions for opioids
and gabapentinoids higher in some of the country’s most
deprived areas.
‘People who have been on these drugs for longer time
periods should not stop taking their medication
suddenly,’ PHE stresses. ‘If they are concerned they
should seek the support of their GP.’ However, people
who had experienced problems with the drugs reported
feeling ‘uninformed’ when they started taking them and
‘unsupported’ after getting into difficulties. ‘Patients
experienced barriers to accessing and engaging in
treatment services,’ the report says. ‘They felt there was
a lack of information on the risks of medication and that
doctors did not acknowledge or recognise withdrawal
symptoms.’
Among the
document’s
recommendations
are the development
of new clinical
guidelines on the
safe management of
dependence and
withdrawal
problems, and
improved
information for
patients about the
benefits and risks of
the medications. It
also wants to see
better training for
clinicians to make sure
their prescribing
adheres to best
practice, and the
establishment of a
rOSanna O’COnnOr
national helpline for
patients.
‘We know that GPs
in some of the more deprived areas are under great
pressure but, as this review highlights, more needs to be
done to educate and support patients, as well as looking
closely at prescribing practice, and what alternative
treatments are available locally,’ said PHE’s director of
alcohol, drugs, tobacco and justice, Rosanna O’Connor.
‘While the scale and nature of opioid prescribing does
not reflect the so-called crisis in North America, the NHS
needs to take action now to protect patients.’
Prescribed medicines review: report at www.gov.uk
DRINKING DAYS
SMOKELESS
FUELLED
Adult smoking rates in England
fell by 2.2 per cent in the first six
months of the year, according to
University College London’s
smoking toolkit study – the
equivalent of 200 fewer smokers
every hour. ‘We’re really excited
about this data showing such a
huge drop in the number of
smokers so far in 2019,’ said
study lead professor Jamie Brown.
‘We’re at an all-time low for the
number of smokers, but we want
to see more people quitting.’
www.ucl.ac.uk/health-
psychology/research/
Smoking_Toolkit_Study
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
‘more needs to be
done to educate
and support
patients.’
THE PERCENTAGE OF MEN IN SCOTLAND
drinking more than four units on their
heaviest drinking day has fallen from 45 per
cent to 36 per cent since 2003, according to
the latest figures, while the percentage of
women drinking more than three units fell
from 37 to 28 per cent over the same period.
The proportion of adults who now smoke is
19 per cent, down from 28 per cent in 2003.
Scottish health survey 2018 at
https://www.gov.scot/
‘We’re at an all-time SOCIAL SALES
low for the number A QUARTER OF YOUNG PEOPLE have seen
illegal drugs advertised for sale on social
of smokers...’
media, according to a report from Volteface.
prOfeSSOr JamIe BrOWn
Cannabis, cocaine and MDMA were the
substances most frequently advertised, says
DM for details: selling drugs in the age of
social media, with distribution activity most
prevalent on Snapchat, Instagram and
Facebook. ‘Social media is providing drug
dealers with easy-to-use and familiar
platforms that they can use to find and build
trust with customers, advertise their
business, and disguise their activities,’ the
document states. ‘The emergence of drug
markets on social media is not simply a
transfer of harmful activity from the offline
world onto the online world. It is a new
problem which presents new threats.’
Report at volteface.me
HALF MEASURES
THE INTRODUCTION OF MINIMUM UNIT
PRICING (MUP) in Scotland appears to have
cut the amount purchased per person by
around 1.2 units a
week, according
to a paper
published in the
BMJ, the
equivalent of half
a pint of beer.
Reductions in
consumption
‘only occurred in
the households
that bought the
most alcohol’,
says Immediate
impact of minimum unit pricing on alcohol
purchases in Scotland. Meanwhile, the first
study into the impact of alcohol minimum
pricing on homeless drinkers has been
launched by Glasgow Caledonian University.
‘You might think MUP would affect homeless
people and street drinkers the most, given
they represent the poorest groups in society
and tend to consume cheap alcohol,’ said co-
lead Prof Lawrie Elliott. ‘However, we don't
know this, nor do we know about any
unintended consequences of the legislation –
for example switching to illicit alcohol or
drugs.’ Report at
www.bmj.com/content/366/bmj.l5274
GET TESTED
UP TO TWO THIRDS of the estimated 143,000
people in the UK living with a chronic
hepatitis C infection may be unaware they
have it, according to the latest figures from
PHE. The agency is renewing its call for
anyone who believes they have been at risk
of contracting the virus – particularly if they
have ever injected drugs – to get tested.
‘Given that new treatments provide a cure in
around 95 per cent of those who take them,
there has never been a better time,’ said PHE
senior scientist Dr Helen Harris.
Hepatitis C in the UK at www.gov.uk
October 2019 | drinkanddrugsnews | 5