The Adolescent Opioid Overdose Epidemic - Addressing the Crisis from Clinic and Beyond

Sunday, April 30, 2023

2:00 PM – 3:30 PM ET

Location: Convention Center: 202 A

CE: Live CME: 1.50

Selected By: SAHM
Co-sponsored By: AAP

Chair(s)

Andrew Terranella, MD MPH FAAP (he/him/his)

Medical Epidemiologist
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Overdose Prevention
Tucson, Arizona, United States

Disclosure(s):

Andrew Terranella, MD MPH FAAP: No financial relationships to disclose

Session

Description: Drug overdose mortality among adolescents in the United States has increased in recent years, driven by overdoses involving illicitly-manufactured fentanyl and psychostimulants. Prevalence of opioid use disorder (OUD) remains high, and overdoses involving fentanyl and synthetic opioids more than tripled from 2019-2021 alone. Treatment with medications for OUD (MOUD) can reduce risk of overdose, and the American Academy of Pediatrics and other professional organizations have recommended MOUD and routine screening for substance use in primary care. However, screening and treatment for adolescents have been underutilized. Understanding the overdose epidemic as well as evidence-based prevention, screening and treatment recommendations are crucial for pediatricians and adolescent-serving clinicians’ ability to identify at-risk youth and link them to appropriate care.
This panel will share approaches to addressing OUD and preventing overdose in adolescents. The first presentation will provide an overview of the epidemiology of illicit use of opioids and overdose in the US and review the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s strategic priorities for overdose prevention. The second presentation will provide a clinical approach to preventing OUD in adolescents, including an overview of safe opioid prescribing and early detection of substance use disorders through the American Academy of Pediatrics-recommended strategy of screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment. The final presentation will provide an overview of evidence-based OUD treatment in adolescents, including use of medications for OUD, behavioral health approaches, harm reduction, and stigma reduction in primary care practice.

Learning Objectives:

Describe the epidemiology of adolescent opioid overdose in the US and how health systems can address OUD and overdose in youth in their communities.
Implement at least one treatment, harm reduction, or behavioral health intervention in a primary care clinic to reduce the risk of overdose in their patients.
Understand how stigma affects access to substance use care for adolescents, and recognize and reduce stigmatizing language and behaviors in their own practices.

Presentations:

2:00 PM – 2:30 PM ET

Public health approaches to opioid use disorder and overdose prevention in adolescents
Speaker: Andrew Terranella, MD MPH FAAP (he/him/his) – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Overdose Prevention
2:30 PM – 2:55 PM ET

Pediatric primary care-based prevention, screening and referral for youth with opioid use disorders
Speaker: Scott E. Hadland, MD, MPH, MS, FAAP (he/him/his) – Mass General for Children / Harvard Medical School
2:55 PM – 3:30 PM ET

Integrating treatment for opioid use disorder and overdose prevention in pediatric primary care
Speaker: Sarah Bagley, MD, MSc (she/her/hers) – Boston University School of Medicine