Oxycodone-related deaths in Sweden 2006-2018.

Aim: To identify and characterize oxycodone related deaths in Sweden from 2006 to 2018 and to compare them to other opioid-related deaths.

Methods: To assess the factors contributing to the deaths, we used multinomial logistic regression to compare oxycodone-related deaths extracted from all forensic autopsy examinations and toxicology cases in the age groups 15-34 (reference group), 35-54 and 55-74 with regard to sex, presence of benzodiazepines and alcohol at the time of death, prescription of oxycodone, benzodiazepines and antidepressants, previous substance use-related (SUD) treatment, and manner of death. The oxycodone related deaths were compared with deaths with presence of other opioids.

Methadone-related deaths among youth and young adults in Sweden 2006-15.

Aims: To identify methadone-related deaths and determine the prevalence among youth and young adults in Sweden 2006-15.

Design, Setting And Participants: National retrospective registry study comparing data from all forensic autopsy examinations and toxicology cases involving methadone during 2006-15 in individuals aged 15-29 years with police records, previous pharmaceutical prescriptions and health-care episodes.

Measurements: Multinomial logistic regression.

Opioid-related deaths and previous care for drug use and pain relief in Sweden.

Aim: In 2006-2014, the rate of drug-related deaths, typically opioid poisonings, more than doubled in Sweden. Opioid prescriptions for pain control or opioid agonist therapy also increased. In this retrospective study, we compared death rates between individuals whose first recorded contact with prescribed opioids was for pain control and individuals that had received substance use disorder (SUD) treatment before their first recorded opioid prescription.

Drug-related deaths: Statistics based on death certificates miss one-third of cases.

Statistics on drug-related deaths (DRD) provide crucial information on the drug situation. The European Monitoring Centre for Drug and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) has published a specification for extracting DRD from national mortality registers to be used in international comparisons. However, surprisingly little is known of the accuracy of DRD statistics derived from national mortality registers.