ISSN:
1360-0443
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
,
Psychology
Notes:
Aims To determine whether cannabinoid-positive urine specimens in heroin-dependent out-patients predict other drug use or impairments in psychosocial functioning, and whether such outcomes are better predicted by cannabis-use disorders than by cannabis use itself.Design Retrospective analyses of three clinical trials; each included a behavioral intervention (contingency management) for cocaine or heroin use during methadone maintenance. Trials lasted 25–29 weeks; follow-up evaluations occurred 3, 6 and 12 months post-treatment. For the present analyses, data were pooled across trials where appropriate.Setting Urban out-patient methadone clinic.Participants Four hundred and eight polydrug abusers meeting methadone-maintenance criteria.Measurements Participants were categorized as non-users, occasional users or frequent users of cannabis based on thrice-weekly qualitative urinalyses. Cannabis-use disorders were assessed with the Diagnostic Interview Schedule III-R. Outcome measures included proportion of cocaine- and opiate-positive urines and the Addiction Severity Index (at intake and follow-ups).Findings Cannabis use was not associated with retention, use of cocaine or heroin, or any other outcome measure during or after treatment. Our analyses had a power of 0.95 to detect an r2 of 0.11 between cannabis use and heroin or cocaine use; the r2 we detected was less than 0.03 and non-significant. A previous finding, that cannabis use predicted lapse to heroin use in heroin-abstinent patients, did not replicate in our sample. However, cannabis-use disorders were associated weakly with psychosocial problems at post-treatment follow-up.Conclusions Cannabinoid-positive urines need not be a major focus of clinical attention during treatment for opiate dependence, unless patients report symptoms of cannabis-use disorders.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1360-0443.2003.00310.x
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