About
149
Publications
25,558
Reads
How we measure 'reads'
A 'read' is counted each time someone views a publication summary (such as the title, abstract, and list of authors), clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the full-text. Learn more
2,482
Citations
Introduction
Senior public health researcher and epidemiologist at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Addiction Research (ZIS), University of Hamburg (Germany). Research focus on addiction epidemiology, comorbidity, health care research and implementation science.
Skills and Expertise
Publications
Publications (149)
Introduction
Implementation of evidence-based care for heavy drinking and depression remains low in global health systems. We tested the impact of providing community support, training, and clinical packages of varied intensity on depression screening and management for heavy drinking patients in Latin American primary healthcare.
Materials and me...
Issues:
Numerous studies have examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on alcohol use changes in Europe, with concerns raised regarding increased use and related harms.
Approach:
We synthesised observational studies published between 1 January 2020 and 31 September 2021 on self-reported changes in alcohol use associated with COVID-19. Electr...
Background:
During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase of heavy alcohol use has been reported in several high-income countries. We examined changes in alcohol use during the pandemic among primary health care (PHC) patients in two middle income countries, Colombia and Mexico.
Methods:
Data were collected during routine consultations in 34 PHC cen...
Introduction:
The COVID-19 pandemic may have led to an increase in the alcohol-specific mortality. Against this backdrop, the aim of this report is to explore alcohol-specific mortality trends in Germany of the years 2010 to 2020.
Method:
Alcohol-specific mortality data aggregated by sex, 5-year age groups and state were collected from the annua...
Background: Effective interventions exist for heavy drinking and depression but to date there has been limited translation into routine practice in global health systems. This evidence-to-practice gap is particularly evident in low- and middle-income countries. The international SCALA project (Scale-up of Prevention and Management of Alcohol Use Di...
Introduction: For people with alcohol use disorder (AUD), the German treatment guidelines recommend inpatient qualified withdrawal (QWT; physical withdrawal plus psychosocial treatment to enhance motivation to abstain from drinking) and post-acute rehabilitation treatment. This study is the first to (a) evaluate re-hospitalisation among AUD patient...
Background
A variety of treatment options for people with alcohol use disorder (AUD) exist. Surveys estimate that 1 in 10 people with AUD utilise treatment, but real-world treatment pathways remain covert. This data-linkage study seeks to characterise treatment utilisation patterns to identify gaps in treatment access and delivery in Germany.
Meth...
Aims
Our study aimed to a) describe the distribution of hospital discharges with primary and secondary alcohol‐specific diagnoses by sex and age group, and b) describe how the number of hospital discharges with primary and secondary alcohol‐specific diagnoses have changed across different diagnostic groups (categorized by primary International Clas...
Aim: Alcohol use is causing a considerable health burden for individuals and society in Germany. To reduce the burden from alcohol use, ensuring optimal treatment for those who are in need, is key. With this data-linkage study, we aim to provide a comprehensive description of healthcare service use among individuals with alcohol use disorders (AUD)...
Background
Although many individuals with alcohol dependence (AD) are recognized in the German healthcare system, only a few utilize addiction-specific treatment services. Those who enter treatment are not well characterized regarding their prospective pathways through the highly fragmented German healthcare system. This paper aims to (1) identify...
Background and Aims
Even though a ban of alcohol marketing has been declared a ‘best buy’ of alcohol control policy, comprehensive systematic reviews on its effectiveness to reduce consumption are lacking. The aim of this paper was to systematically review the evidence for effects of total and partial bans of alcohol marketing on alcohol consumptio...
This is the supplementary file / online appendix of:
Wiessing, L., Banka-Cullen, P., Barbaglia, M. G., Belackova, V., Belbaisi, S. A., Blanken, P., ... & Yiasemi, I. (2023). Opioid Agonist Maintenance Treatment Outcomes—The OPTIMUS International Consensus Towards Evidence-Based and Patient-Centred Care, an Interim Report. International Journal of...
Non-medical opioid use is a major public health concern causing high mortality. While opioid agonist maintenance treatment (OMT) is a key life-saving intervention, there is a) no international consensus on opioid treatment outcomes, b) few opioid treatment outcome studies include key (public) health outcomes, such as overdose or HIV/hepatitis C. We...
Introduction:
Opioid agonist treatment (OAT) is the most common and most effective treatment option for persons with opioid use disorders (OUD). In Germany, the prescription of OAT medications is regulated by the Narcotic Drugs Prescription Ordinance. With the introduction of restrictions to contain the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the German OAT regulations...
Background:
The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has been linked to changes in alcohol consumption, access to healthcare services and alcohol-attributable harm. In this contribution, we quantify changes in alcohol-specific mortality and hospitalizations at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 in Germany.
Methods:
We obtained monthly...
Background
In Germany, most individuals with alcohol dependence are recognized by the health care system and about 16% per year receive addiction-specific care. This paper aimed to analyze the prevalence and treatment utilization rate of people with alcohol dependence by type of addiction-specific care in the federal state of Bremen using routine a...
Researchers and practitioners recognise the importance of context when implementing healthcare interventions, but the influence of wider environment is rarely mapped. This paper identifies the country and policy-related factors potentially explaining the country differences in outcomes of an intervention focused on improving detection and managemen...
This paper describes the plan for a process evaluation of a quasi-experimental study testing the municipal level scale-up of primary health care-based measurement and brief advice programmes to reduce heavy drinking and comorbid depression in Colombia, Mexico, and Peru. The main aims of the evaluation are to assess the implementation of interventio...
Objective: The aim of this pilot trial was to assess the feasibility of ASBI in primary health care units (PHCUs) in Kazakhstan.
Methods: A two-arm cluster randomised trial in five PHCUs based on the RE-AIM framework for implementation studies was carried out. Patients with AUDIT-C scores ≥4 for females and ≥5 for males received a brief face-to-fac...
Zusammenfassung
Hintergrund Personen mit injizierendem Drogenkonsum werden häufig nicht von Angeboten zur Hepatitis-C-Testung und -Behandlung erreicht. Um die Verfügbarkeit von Testangeboten zu erhöhen, wurde 2020 § 24 des Infektionsschutzgesetzes dahingehend umformuliert, dass nunmehr u. a. Hepatitis-C-Schnelltests auch von nicht-ärztlichem Person...
Aims: Due to large inconsistencies in previous studies, it remains unclear how alcohol use is related to health care utilization. The aim of this study was to examine associations between alcohol drinking status with utilization of outpatient and inpatient health care services in Germany. Methodology: Survey data of the GEDA 2014/2015-EHIS study wi...
Zusammenfassung
Hintergrund Einrichtungen der Aids- und Drogenhilfe bieten einen niedrigschwelligen Zugang für Menschen mit injizierendem und anderen Drogenkonsumformen und spielen somit eine zentrale Rolle für die Eindämmung von Hepatitis C Virus (HCV)-Infektionen in dieser Hochrisikogruppe. Ziel dieser Studie ist es, die Versorgungsleistungen sow...
Σκοπός: Η διερεύνηση των αλλαγών στην κατανάλωση αλκοόλ κατά τους πρώτους μήνες της πανδημίας COVID-19 στην Ευρώπη, καθώς και οι συσχετίσεις με το εισοδηματικό επίπεδο και τις εμπειρίες δυσφορίας που σχετίζονται με την πανδημία. Σχεδιασμός: Διαδικτυακή δημοσκοπική μελέτη που διεξήχθη μεταξύ 24 Απριλίου και 22 Ιουλίου 2020. Χώρος: Είκοσι μία ευρωπαϊ...
Zusammenfassung
Hintergrund
Die Opioidsubstitutionstherapie (OST) hat sich als wichtigste Therapieoption zur Verbesserung der gesundheitlichen und sozialen Belastungen von Menschen mit einer Opioidabhängigkeit etabliert. Im Rahmen der OST beliefern Apotheken nicht nur substituierende Arztpraxen oder Ambulanzen mit den entsprechenden Substanzen, so...
Introduction
Heavy drinking and depression frequently co-occur and make a substantial contribution to the global non-communicable disease burden. Positive evidence exists for the use of digital interventions with these conditions alone, but there has been limited assessment of combined approaches.
Objective
A systematic review of the effectiveness...
Engagement in “chemsex” among men who have sex with men is associated with higher rates of STIs and HIV seroconversion as well as an increased mental health burden. MSM were recruited for an anonymous online survey. The survey included questions of substance use, consumption motives, sexual risk behavior, HIV serostatus, and psychological character...
Aims
To investigate changes in alcohol consumption during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe as well as its associations with income and experiences of distress related to the pandemic.
Design
Cross-sectional on-line survey conducted between 24 April and 22 July 2020.
Setting
Twenty-one European countries.
Participants
A total o...
Objectives
This contribution provides insights into the methodology of a pan‐European population‐based online survey, performed without external funding during the COVID‐19 pandemic. We present the impact of different dissemination strategies to collect data from a non‐probabilistic convenience sample and outline post‐stratification weighting schem...
Background
SARS-CoV-2 reached Europe in early 2020 and disrupted the private and public life of its citizens, with potential implications for substance use. The objective of this study was to describe possible changes in substance use in the first months of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Europe.
Methods
Data were obtained from a cross-sectional online...
Background: Screening for unhealthy alcohol use in routine consultations can aid primary health care (PHC) providers in detecting patients with hazardous or harmful consumption and providing them with appropriate care. As part of larger trial testing strategies to improve implementation of alcohol screening in PHC, this study investigated the motiv...
Zusammenfassung
Ziel der Studie Für die erfolgreiche Implementierung von Leitlinien sind kontextspezifische Umsetzungsstrategien, welche die spezifische Versorgungssituation sowie mögliche Umsetzungsbarrieren berücksichtigen, vielversprechend. Ziel dieser Untersuchung war es, mögliche Barrieren und präferierte Umsetzungsstrategien für die Implement...
Study aim:
Opioid substitution treatment (OST) is the most effective drug treatment for opioid dependence worldwide. This form of therapy is also well established in Germany. Nevertheless, there are gaps in the provision of care, especially in rural areas and some states, due to a decreasing number of physicians involved in implementing the substi...
Zusammenfassung
Hintergrund Die Opioidsubstitutionstherapie (OST) ist in Deutschland die wichtigste Therapieoption zur Behandlung der Opioidabhängigkeit. Trotz ihrer Effektivität limitieren strukturelle Rahmenbedingungen und die Zurückhaltung v. a. jüngerer ÄrztInnen, die Substitution anzubieten oder fortzuführen, die Ausweitung dieser Behandlung....
Background
Research has described subtypes with more internalizing and more externalizing symptoms in samples of patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and samples of patients with substance use disorders (SUD).
Objective
This study sought to examine the respective subtypes in female PTSD-SUD patients and potential relationships with...
Background
Providing alcohol screening and brief advice (SBA) in primary health care (PHC) can be an effective measure to reduce alcohol consumption. To aid successful implementation in an upper middle-income country context, this study investigates the perceived appropriateness of the programme and the perceived barriers to its implementation in P...
Purpose
We aimed to test the effects of providing municipal support and training to primary health care providers compared to both training alone and to care as usual on the proportion of adult patients having their alcohol consumption measured.
Methods
We undertook a quasi-experimental study reporting on a 5-month implementation period in 58 prim...
Background: SARS-CoV-2 reached Europe in early 2020 and disrupted the private and public life of its citizens, with potential implications for substance use. The objective of this study was to describe possible changes in substance use in the first months of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Europe.
Methods: Data were obtained from a cross-sectional onlin...
Aims: The aim of this project was to investigate changes in alcohol consumption during the first months of the pandemic in Europe as well as its associations with income and experiences of distress related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design: Cross-sectional online survey conducted between April 24 and July 22 of 2020.
Setting: 21 European countries....
Aims: The aim of this project was to investigate changes in alcohol consumption during the first months of the pandemic in Europe as well as its associations with income and experiences of distress related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design: Cross-sectional online survey conducted between April 24 and July 22 of 2020.
Setting: 21 European countries....
Zusammenfassung
Ziel Erfassung der Häufigkeit, mit der zentral in die Gesundheitsversorgung der Zielgruppe eingebundene Berufsgruppen auf problematischen Alkoholkonsum screenen. Die S3-Leitlinie „Screening, Diagnose und Behandlung alkoholbezogener Störungen“ empfiehlt „allen Patient/innen in allen Settings“ ein fragebogenbasiertes Screening anzubie...
Introduction: Once-weekly or once-monthly injectable depot buprenorphine is a new opioid substitution treatment (OST) medication that provides clinically relevant plasma concentrations without daily peaks. Together with a high tolerability and acceptance reported by patients, the prolonged release of injectable depot buprenorphine might have benefi...
Zusammenfassung
Ziel der Studie Die Art und Häufigkeit durchgeführter Diagnostik, Kurzintervention und Behandlung bei PatientInnen mit bekanntem problematischen Alkoholkonsum und Alkoholkonsumstörungen durch Berufsgruppen der Gesundheitsversorgung soll erfasst werden. Diese Informationen dienen der Bedarfsabschätzung zur Entwicklung von Strategien...
Zusammenfassung. Zielsetzung: Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war, die Veränderung des Alkoholkonsums während der SARS-CoV-2 Pandemie in Deutschland zu untersuchen und mit derer anderer europäischer Länder zu vergleichen. Methodik: Analyse von soziodemographischen und sozioökonomischen Daten sowie Angaben zur Veränderung des Alkoholkonsums seit der Pa...
Objective
A history of childhood abuse and neglect (CAN) is significantly associated with psychopathologies in adulthood, including comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorders (SUD). Difficulties in emotion regulation (ER) might influence the association between CAN and PTSD. The aim of this study was to examine the re...
Background
Patient reported outcomes (PRO) can help to reduce uncertainties about hepatitis C (HCV) treatment with direct-acting antivirals (DAA) among people who inject drugs and increase the treatment uptake in this high-risk group. Besides clinical data, this study analysed for the first time PRO in a real-world sample of patients in opioid agon...
Introduction
Due to their euphoric and sedative effects, opioid analgesics have high potential for abuse and dependence. In the last decade in the USA and many Western European Countries the prescription rates of opioid analgesics have steadily increased.
Objective
This study describes 5-year trends in the prescription of opioid analgesics and ris...
Background:
Despite evidence supporting the effectiveness of alcohol screening and brief advice to reduce heavy drinking, implementation in primary healthcare remains limited. The challenges that clinicians experience when delivering such interventions are well-known, but we have little understanding of the patient perspective. We used Normalizati...
Background : While primary health care-based prevention and management of heavy drinking is clinically effective and cost-effective, it remains poorly implemented in routine practice. Systematic reviews and multi-country studies have demonstrated the ability of training and support programmes for healthcare professionals to increase primary health...
Background:
Identifying and addressing heavy drinking represents a major public health priority worldwide. Whilst the majority of alcohol screening and brief intervention (ASBI) research has been conducted in western, high-income countries, evidence is growing that ASBI can also impact positively on heavy drinkers in low- and middle-income country...
Background:
According to the German guidelines, people with severe alcohol use disorders (AUDs) should receive withdrawal treatment. Compared to somatic withdrawal treatment (SWT), extended duration and psychosocial elements of so-called "qualified withdrawal treatment" (QWT) aim to reduce relapse rates. Despite promising results of prospective st...
Background
The German Guideline on Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorders aims to increase the uptake of evidence-based interventions for the early identification, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of alcohol-related disorders in relevant healthcare settings. To date, dissemination has not been accompanied by a guideline impl...
Background
Early detection of risky alcohol use and severe alcohol use disorders (AUDs) is crucial to avoid adverse health consequences. The German “Guidelines on Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorders” recommend to routinely screen patients for hazardous alcohol use and to subsequently conduct brief interventions, for example...
Zusammenfassung
Hintergrund Opioidabhängige sind häufig von psychischen Komorbiditäten, insbesondere affektiven Störungen wie Depressionen betroffen. Die Diagnostik und Behandlung von depressiven Störungen in der Substitutionsbehandlung Opioidabhängiger stellen eine besondere Herausforderung dar. Dabei besteht die Gefahr, dass ein Teil der Patiente...
Introduction
Mental healthcare is one of the biggest challenges for healthcare systems. Comorbidities between different mental disorders are common, and patients suffer from a high burden of disease. While the effectiveness of collaborative and stepped care models has been shown for single disorders, comorbid mental disorders have rarely been addre...
Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is highly prevalent among patients in opioid substitution treatment. National epidemiological data on the prevalence and incidence of HCV in patients receiving opioid substitution treatment in Germany is lacking. This data is urgently needed to calculate the current and future burden of HCV infection wi...
Background:
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is highly prevalent among people who inject drugs (PWID). Accurate data on HCV prevalence and incidence rates among patients receiving opioid substitution treatment (OST) are needed to estimate the current and future burden of HCV infections in this high-risk population.
Methods:
Baseline data from r...
Introduction
Excessive drinking and depression are frequently comorbid and make a substantial contribution to the global non-communicable disease burden. A range of effective interventions and treatments exist for either excessive drinking or depression alone, including a positive emerging evidence base for the use of digital interventions. Compute...
Presenting results of assessing the provision of health care for people with risky alcohol use and severe alcohol use disorders in the state of Bremen, Germany
Hintergrund In der S3-Leitlinie „Screening, Diagnose und Behandlung alkoholbezogener Störungen“ wird die routinemäßige Anwendung von Screeningverfahren sowie die anschließende Durchführung von Kurzinterventionen bei Personen mit riskantem Alkoholkonsum empfohlen. Für Personen mit einer schweren Alkoholkonsumstörung sind laut Leitlinie Entzugsbehand...
Background:
Opioid addiction is one of the most common substance-related disorders worldwide, and morbidity and mortality due to opioid addiction place a heavy burden on society. Knowing the size of the population that is addicted to opioids is a prerequisite for the development and implementation of appropriate health-policy measures.
Methods:...
Hintergrund: Die Abhängigkeit von Opioiden zählt weltweit zu den häufigsten substanzbezogenen
Störungen und verursacht eine erhebliche gesellschaftliche Belastung
durch Morbidität und Mortalität. Den Umfang der opioidabhängigen Population
zu kennen, ist eine Voraussetzung für gesundheitspolitische Maßnahmen.
Methode: Die Schätzung für das Jahr 2016...
Die Versorgung psychischer Störungen stellt eine große Herausforderung für das deutsche Gesundheitssystem dar. Wenn Mehrfachdiagnosen vorliegen, leiden die Betroffenen unter einer besonders hohen Krankheitslast. Innovative Behandlungsmodelle für eine integrierte und gestufte Versorgung (Collaborative Care und Stepped Care) sind bisher nur hinsichtl...
Background
Knowledge of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients receiving opioid substitution treatment (OST) is limited and fragmented. The present study examines the HRQOL of a large national sample of OST patients in Germany and sociodemographic and clinical correlates.
Methods
Cross-sectional data on the HRQOL of 2176 OST patients w...
Background: Opioid substitution treatment (OST) is an evidence-based intervention for patients with opioid dependence. Quality of life (QOL) research of patients undergoing OST is lacking a treatment-specific psychodiagnostic questionnaire to assess the QOL of this target group. Aim of the presented study was to develop a suitable QOL instrument fo...
Franke, G.H.1, Strada, L.2, Schulte, B.2, Reimer, J. 2,3 & Verthein, U.2
1 – Psychology of Rehabilitation, University of Applied Sciences Magdeburg & Stendal, Stendal, Germany
2 - Centre for Interdisciplinary Addiction Research, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
3 – Health Nord, Hospital Group, Bremen, Germany
OSTQOL...
Introduction: Despite the considerable health, social and economic benefits that could be achieved through more effective implementation of preventive interventions aimed at reducing the non-communicable disease burden, only a small fraction of these innovations are delivered in routine practice, often many years after they were first developed. Br...