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People Who Use Illegal Opioids Use of Methadone over Time, and What Characteristics Are Correlated with Staying in Methadone Maintenance Treatment.

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Title: People Who Use Illegal Opioids Use of Methadone over Time, and What Characteristics Are Correlated with Staying in Methadone Maintenance Treatment.
Authors: Frank, David (AUTHOR), Elliott, Luther (AUTHOR), Bennett, Alex (AUTHOR), Cleland, Charles (AUTHOR), Patel, Dev (AUTHOR), Scheidell, Joy (AUTHOR)
Source: Substance Use & Misuse. 2026, Vol. 61 Issue 5, p766-773. 8p.
Subjects: Substance abuse, Patient compliance, Health services accessibility, Self-evaluation, Methadone hydrochloride, Therapeutics, Research funding, Multiple regression analysis, Drug addiction, Travel, Age distribution, Classification of mental disorders, Descriptive statistics, Psychology of drug abusers, Longitudinal method, Attitude (Psychology), Heroin, Narcotics, Statistics, Drugs, Data analysis software, Drugs of abuse, Patients' attitudes, Regression analysis
Geographic Terms: New York (State)
Abstract: Introduction: Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) is among the best strategies for reducing harms associated with illegal opioid use, yet it is hindered by low rates of treatment initiation and retention that limit its impact. There has been a lack of studies that describe how people who use illegal opioids use methadone–both from opioid treatment programs, and bought illegally–over time, or what factors correlate with long-term participation in MMT. Methods: We collected monthly survey data from N = 412 people who use illicit opioids in New York City from April 2019–2022. We used bivariate analyses to estimate the distribution of baseline sociodemographic and background characteristics. Multinomial logistic regression was then used to estimate the association between those characteristics and methadone use over time. Results: Findings show that people who are older, who used heroin for longer amounts of time, and who had multiple episodes of substance use disorder treatment other than medication for opioid use disorder are more likely to use MMT consistently over time. Discussion: Our findings may be related to the many barriers to long-term participation in MMT, such as travel distance, the need for regular attendance, and patients' dissatisfaction with opioid treatment programs. Consistent participation in MMT may become acceptable only when the difficulties and burdens of criminalized drug use begin to outweigh those of MMT participation, and after non-medication-using treatments have already been tried. Efforts to make MMT less burdensome could reduce the tendency to avoid MMT until later in life and improve people's consistency of participation over time. HIGHLIGHTS: • Our data show that people who are older, who used heroin for longer amounts of time, and who had multiple non-MOUD Substance Use Disorder (SUD) treatment experiences are more likely to use MMT consistently over time. • Findings suggest a trajectory or life-history model of MMT usage whereby people engage with treatment more consistently over time and through the accumulation of certain experiences, including non-MOUD SUD treatment episodes. • Long-term participation in MMT may only become acceptable over time as the difficulties and burdens of criminalized drug use are perceived to outweigh those imposed by MMT participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Substance Use & Misuse is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: People Who Use Illegal Opioids Use of Methadone over Time, and What Characteristics Are Correlated with Staying in Methadone Maintenance Treatment.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Substance+Use+%26+Misuse%22">Substance Use & Misuse</searchLink>. 2026, Vol. 61 Issue 5, p766-773. 8p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22New+York+%28State%29%22">New York (State)</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
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  Data: Introduction: Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) is among the best strategies for reducing harms associated with illegal opioid use, yet it is hindered by low rates of treatment initiation and retention that limit its impact. There has been a lack of studies that describe how people who use illegal opioids use methadone–both from opioid treatment programs, and bought illegally–over time, or what factors correlate with long-term participation in MMT. Methods: We collected monthly survey data from N = 412 people who use illicit opioids in New York City from April 2019–2022. We used bivariate analyses to estimate the distribution of baseline sociodemographic and background characteristics. Multinomial logistic regression was then used to estimate the association between those characteristics and methadone use over time. Results: Findings show that people who are older, who used heroin for longer amounts of time, and who had multiple episodes of substance use disorder treatment other than medication for opioid use disorder are more likely to use MMT consistently over time. Discussion: Our findings may be related to the many barriers to long-term participation in MMT, such as travel distance, the need for regular attendance, and patients' dissatisfaction with opioid treatment programs. Consistent participation in MMT may become acceptable only when the difficulties and burdens of criminalized drug use begin to outweigh those of MMT participation, and after non-medication-using treatments have already been tried. Efforts to make MMT less burdensome could reduce the tendency to avoid MMT until later in life and improve people's consistency of participation over time. HIGHLIGHTS: • Our data show that people who are older, who used heroin for longer amounts of time, and who had multiple non-MOUD Substance Use Disorder (SUD) treatment experiences are more likely to use MMT consistently over time. • Findings suggest a trajectory or life-history model of MMT usage whereby people engage with treatment more consistently over time and through the accumulation of certain experiences, including non-MOUD SUD treatment episodes. • Long-term participation in MMT may only become acceptable over time as the difficulties and burdens of criminalized drug use are perceived to outweigh those imposed by MMT participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Substance Use & Misuse is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/10826084.2025.2586255
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 8
        StartPage: 766
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Substance abuse
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Patient compliance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Health services accessibility
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Self-evaluation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Methadone hydrochloride
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Therapeutics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Research funding
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Multiple regression analysis
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Drug addiction
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Travel
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Age distribution
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Classification of mental disorders
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Descriptive statistics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychology of drug abusers
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Longitudinal method
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Attitude (Psychology)
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      – SubjectFull: Heroin
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      – SubjectFull: Narcotics
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      – SubjectFull: Regression analysis
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: New York (State)
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: People Who Use Illegal Opioids Use of Methadone over Time, and What Characteristics Are Correlated with Staying in Methadone Maintenance Treatment.
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              Text: 2026
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