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Daily news - 12th February 2025

UK news

Government ramps up efforts to end HIV transmissions in England

Over 20,000 self-testing and self-sampling kits will be made available to help end HIV transmissions by the end of the decade | Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England, UK Health Security Agency, Ashley Dalton MP, The Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer KCB KC MP and The Rt Hon Wes Streeting MP, UK

Correspondence - Government response to ACMD advice on reform to hemp licensing fees

Government response to the ACMD's advice on increasing the level of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) permissible in industrial hemp from 0.2-0.3% and assessment after 2 years | Home Office and Dame Angela Eagle DBE MP, UK

Substance use expert calls for change in drugs law to enable more safe drug consumption spaces

The call from Professor Catriona Matheson comes as she prepares to give evidence at a government inquiry | University of Stirling, UK

Creating a Smokefree Generation: The role of universities in supporting the Tobacco and Vapes Bill

The UK Government's introduction of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill is a huge moment in public health policy, with its highest profile element being the Smokefree Generation policy. This policy aims to incrementally raise the legal age for purchasing tobacco products by one year every year, starting with individuals born on or after January 2009. As a result, it won't affect 18-year-olds until 2027 | University of Sheffield, UK

INQUEST, DPSC and Release submission to the Justice Committee’s inquiry on Drugs in Prison

Our joint submission with INQUEST and DPSC to the Justice Committee’s inquiry on drugs in prison presents a comprehensive analysis of drug-related harms and deaths within the prison system in England and Wales. It highlights the urgent need for reform and harm reduction strategies, emphasisng the complex interplay between drug use and prison conditions | Release, UK

GPs can now prescribe cytisine pill to patients wanting to quit smoking

NICE has recommended cytisine for people who want to stop smoking, giving GPs another treatment option | Pulse Today, UK

Judges cut sentence for cocaine plot crime boss

A Scottish gangster who orchestrated a plot to smuggle cocaine worth £100m from South America in boxes of bananas has had his prison sentence cut by almost four years | BBC, UK

Hecklers disrupt bowling club's alcohol hearing

Angry hecklers disrupted a virtual council meeting in which a bowling club was applying for permission to sell alcohol | BBC, UK

International news

A heroin overdose laboratory model: How do escalating doses of diamorphine alter respiratory function in a diamorphine-treated population?

[Open access] Globally, more than 100 000 people die annually from opioid overdose. Although strongly implicated in heroin overdose deaths, acute opioid-induced respiratory depression is poorly understood, and few laboratory studies have been completed in human subjects. It is an area of undone science. Using a human laboratory overdose model, our research question was: what is the strength of the association between increasing dose of diamorphine and degree of respiratory depression in people prescribed injectable diamorphine for heroin use disorder? | Addiction, UK

Lawyer of Brits facing Bali drug charges speaks out

Three British nationals detained in Bali on drug smuggling charges have begun meeting with their legal team as they face the prospect of years in a foreign prison if convicted | BBC, UK

The harm done: community and drugs in Dublin (PDF)

The Harm Done — community and drugs in Dublin, is a reflection on how Irish society has dealt with drug problems since the early 1980s, from an author with a unique and lengthy experience as service worker, manager and educator | SethBrimmers, Ireland

Guidance on the Safe Use of Ketamine Outside of Acute Pain Management and Procedural Sedation

ASA strongly believes that the administration of ketamine should adhere to the same standards as other anesthetic medications | ASA, USA

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms and Later E-Cigarette and Tobacco Use in US Youths

In this cohort study of 13 572 US youths, odds of e-cigarette use, cigarette smoking, other tobacco use, and dual use did not significantly differ between those with asymptomatic ADHD (with or without pharmacotherapy) and population controls. In contrast, all youths who had 3 or more ADHD symptoms (with or without pharmacotherapy) had significantly higher adjusted odds of using nicotine and tobacco products | JAMA Network Open, USA

Substance Use Disorder and Harm Reduction Curriculum in United States and Canadian Undergraduate Medical Education: An Online Survey

[Open access] Substance use disorders (SUD) are a significant public health challenge, necessitating that clinicians are trained in SUD treatment and harm reduction (HR) strategies. Despite this, no studies have assessed the extent of SUD and HR training across all medical schools. This study assesses the current state of SUD and HR curriculum among medical students in the United States and Canada | Substance Use & Addiction Journal, USA

[Open access] Set against a comparable US sample, legalisation of cannabis across Canada in 2018 was followed by slightly lesser falls in the frequency of use and related adverse consequences among young adults – perhaps the start of a divergence towards relatively greater use and harm as a result of the law change | IJDP, USA

Canada Pauses on Vape Flavor Ban. But It’s “Far From Over.”

The Canadian government has put a proposed vape flavor ban on hold. The decision, confirmed by Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Ya’ara Saks in January, followed concerted efforts from tobacco harm reduction advocates who oppose the policy. It also arrived amid fresh evidence of the importance of flavors in helping people quit smoking in Canada | Filter Magazine, USA

Integrating routine screening for pregnancy intention and contraceptive use into care of women who use alcohol or other drugs

How a substance use treatment service in Australia integrated a four-question screening element into their (re-)assessment procedures in order to routinely identify a woman’s contraception or pregnancy plans, offering an opportunity to adapt treatment and care to the chance of pregnancy | DAR, USA

Unmet treatment need: The size of the gap for alcohol and other drugs in Australia

[Open access] Assessing unmet demand for alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment requires accurately counting those in treatment and determining those in need of treatment. Using updated epidemiological and treatment data, this study sought to provide an updated estimate of the unmet demand for AOD treatment in Australia | DAR, USA

FARE supports Victorian Coroner’s calls for alcohol delivery reforms

The Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE) has supported Coroner Ingrid Giles’ call for reforms to the state’s alcohol laws today, including restrictions to the delivery of alcohol | FARE, Australia

Blogs, comment and opinion

In Numbers: How The UK Media Talks About Nitazenes

Over the past year, we have seen an increasing amount of attention given to nitazenes. A relatively unknown yet potent class of synthetic opioids first produced in the 1950s, nitazenes have recently resurfaced across multiple illegal markets around the globe. While stronger opiates being used to enhance the heroin market is nothing new, nitazenes were thrust into the British media spotlight when they were found to be connected to a spike in drug-related deaths in the north of England in 2023/4, as well as their widespread detection across various drug supplies as early as April 2021. Given this rapid emergence and spread, media outlets play a key role in determining how nitazenes are understood by the nation | Talking Drugs, UK

Exploring Cultural Experiences of Stigma - your questions answered

Thanks to everyone who joined us online at our recent webinar ‘Exploring Cultural Experiences of Stigma’. If you didn’t get a chance to catch it, we have posted it on our new YouTube channel here: Anti-Stigma Network - YouTube | AntiStigma Network, UK

How opioid deaths tripled in Philly over a decade − and what may be behind a recent downturn

After nearly a decade of almost year-over-year increases in overdose deaths, the tide may finally be turning in Philadelphia. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced in May 2024 an estimated 3% decrease in overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2023 compared with 2022. Shortly after, data from the Philadelphia Department of Public Health showed a similar trend: Fatal overdoses across the city decreased 7% in 2023, from 1,207 to 1,122. The city is expected to release its 2024 data in the spring of 2025 | Conversation, USA

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