The Co-Use of Methamphetamine and Opioids Among Patients in Treatment in Oregon, USA

The NDEWS presents the results of an NDEWS HotSpot study, conducted by Dr. Andrea Lopez. Motivations for the co-use of methamphetamine and opioids identified by Dr. Lopez include: “1) methamphetamine is seen as a safer alternative than heroin; 2) methamphetamine is seen as a strategy to detoxify or titrate the effects of heroin; 3) methamphetamine is seen as a financially beneficial way to maintain a desired high; and 4) there is easy access to purchasing methamphetamine and heroin in combination.” Furthermore, “Polysubstance use, with both methamphetamine and heroin as the primary drug used, tends to be concentrated in young adult treatment cohorts.”