Publications by authors named "Prun Bijral"

Background: Anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) mimic the effects of testosterone and may include testosterone itself; they are used for body enhancement within the general population. AAS use has been linked with increased mortality, cardiovascular disease, mental health disorders, and infertility. AAS-induced hypogonadism can persist for an uncertain time period despite cessation, during which men may report physical and neuropsychiatric symptoms.

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Introduction: Most individuals treated for heroin use disorder receive opioid agonist treatment (OAT)(methadone or buprenorphine). However, OAT is associated with high attrition and persistent, occasional heroin use. There is some evidence for the effectiveness of contingency management (CM), a behavioural intervention involving modest financial incentives, in encouraging drug abstinence when applied adjunctively with OAT.

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Unlabelled: The majority of people receiving treatment for their heroin addiction, are prescribed methadone; for which there is an extensive evidence base. When treatment starts, people take their daily dose of methadone under supervision at a community pharmacy. Supervision guarantees methadone is taken as directed by the individual for whom it has been prescribed, helps to ensure individuals take their correct dose every day, and safeguards against diversion and overdose.

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Objective: To use a pilot of national fentanyl screening to establish the current prevalence of recent fentanyl use among treated users of illicit opioids in the English treatment system and inform the design of a full study.

Design: Cross-sectional fentanyl metabolite urine screening in randomly-selected study sites, stratified to cover all nine geographical regions of England, supplemented with self-report subsequent to a positive fentanyl test.

Patients: 468 adult (18 years of age and above) patients receiving treatment for opioid use disorder, screened December 2017 to May 2018.

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Relapse after initially successful treatment is a significant problem facing the treatment of opioid dependence. Evidence suggests craving elicited by re-exposure to drug cues may precipitate relapse. Attempts to identify neural biomarkers of cue-elicited craving have yielded inconsistent findings.

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