Research News Roundup: October 15, 2026

Journal: JMIR Formative Research, 2026, doi: 10.2196/93263

Authors: Chelsea K. Pike, Catherine Stanger, Inbal Nahum-Shani, Susan A. Murphy, Vanessa Ramirez, Madison Siegel, Lucia Berglund, & Amy Hughes Lansing

Abstract:

Background: Preventive interventions to delay substance use disorder (SUD) are ideally delivered during early adolescence, a critical period for exposure to substance use (SU) risk factors. Young teens (aged 12-14 years) engaging in occasional use of alcohol, cannabis, or tobacco use, or with a family history of SUD, are at increased risk for SUD. Although behavioral-ecological family therapy is effective for prevention, many families face access barriers. Single-session interventions (SSIs) may offer an accessible, low-intensity alternative.

Objective: This open pilot trial aimed to evaluate the acceptability, feasibility, and potential usefulness of a family-based SSI targeting improvements in family practices that prevent SUD.

Methods: Participants were 9 young teens engaging in occasional SU or with a family history of SUD and their parent. The SSI involved a virtual 2-hour family consultation with a trained family coach. Acceptability was measured via Program Feedback Scale, feasibility via SSI completion rate, and potential usefulness via pre-post changes in parenting self-efficacy.

Results: The SSI was acceptable to parents and teens (mean Program Feedback Scale scores ≥3) and feasible (8/9, 88.89% of parent-teen dyads completed the SSI). Among the 8 completing dyads, most participants (13/16, 81.25%) selected Communication and Problem Solving as their primary target for change. Parents reported increases in parenting self-efficacy from pre- to post-SSI.

Conclusions: Findings support the SSI’s acceptability and feasibility for young teens at high risk for SUD. A randomized clinical trial is needed to confirm the SSI’s acceptability, feasibility, and efficacy, as well as to address potential for delivery by a lay workforce.

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Journal: Social Science & Medicine, 2026, doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2026. 119870

Authors: Melissa N. Poulsen, Cara M. Nordberg, Joseph DeWalle, & Brian S. Schwartz

Abstract:

Background: Addressing the opioid epidemic requires understanding environmental factors influencing population-level risk of opioid use disorder (OUD). To elucidate the role of social environmental conditions on opioid-related risk environments, we assessed two community-level measures-social disorganization and social capital-in relation to OUD across an urban-rural spectrum.

Methods: In a case-control study using medical records (2012-2020) from a Pennsylvania health system, 14,674 OUD cases were frequency matched (on age, sex, year, medical record duration) to 58,696 controls. Study individuals were geocoded using residential addresses and assigned to community-level measures created from secondary data. Using logistic regression, we analyzed associations of social environmental measures with OUD in non-stratified models and models stratified by community type, adjusting for individual-level socio-demographic characteristics and community socioeconomic deprivation. Sub-scales of social capital (bonding, bridging, linking) were assessed.

Results: Higher social disorganization was associated (odds ratio [95% CI]) with increasing OUD odds with an exposure-effect relationship (quartile [Q] 2: 1.21 [1.10, 1.32]; Q3: 1.42 [1.28, 1.59]; Q4: 1.77 [1.59, 1.98]; vs Q1). Higher social capital was associated with decreasing OUD odds, with an exposure-effect relationship (Q2: 0.89 [0.82, 0.96]; Q3: 0.85 [0.78, 0.93]; Q4: 0.80 [0.72, 0.89]; vs Q1). Bonding social capital accounted for most of this association. Results for social environmental measures remained consistent when adjusting for socioeconomic deprivation but differed by community type.

Conclusions: Findings add to prior evidence suggesting an influence of the social environment on opioid-related risk. To respond to the opioid epidemic, structural responses should address social environments to improve conditions.

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Journal: JAMA Network Open, 2026, doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen. 2026.37263

Authors: Scott E. Hadland, Ijeoma Opara, Vicki Fung, Dandi Dong, Sitara Weerakoon, Jonathan Rodean, Marie-Abèle C. Bind, … Arthur Robin Williams

Abstract:

Importance: One in 100 adolescents and young adults (hereafter “youths”) in the US has an opioid use disorder (OUD), yet little is known about the extent to which they receive care aligned with national quality measures.

Objective: To evaluate progression through the OUD cascade of care (COC) among Medicaid-enrolled youths, with key stages of treatment aligned with national quality measures.

Design, setting, and participants: This cohort study used enrollment and health insurance claims from all US states and Washington, DC, from the 2016-2023 Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System Analytic Files. Participants had OUD and were aged 13 to 25 years. Data were analyzed from November 3, 2025, to July 24, 2026.

Exposures: Diagnosis of OUD and receipt of addiction treatment, including behavioral health services and medications for OUD (MOUD; buprenorphine, methadone, or extended-release naltrexone).

Main outcomes and measures: Progression through COC stages aligned with national quality measures: treatment initiation, engagement, MOUD receipt, and 180-day MOUD retention.

Results: Among 229 847 youths with OUD enrolled in Medicaid (median age, 22 [IQR, 20-24] years; 117 920 females [51.3%]), 116 458 (50.7%) initiated treatment within 14 days of diagnosis, and 75 614 (32.9%) engaged in care (ie, had 2 or more additional treatment encounters within 34 days of treatment initiation). Among the 75 614 youths who engaged in treatment, 35 011 (46.3%) received MOUD, representing 15.2% of all 229 847 youths with OUD. However, only 554 of 8352 adolescents younger than 18 years who engaged in treatment received MOUD (6.6%), compared with 34 457 of 67 262 young adults 18 years and older (51.2%). Buprenorphine was the most initiated medication (n = 23 990 of 35 011 [68.5%]), followed by methadone (n = 8911 [25.5%]) and extended-release naltrexone (n = 2110 [6.0%]). Overall, only 7070 of 229 847 youths (3.1%) continued medication for 180 days or more. Among youths receiving MOUD, retention was highest for methadone (n = 2334 of 8911 [26.2%]), followed by buprenorphine (n = 4613 of 23 990 [19.2%]) and extended-release naltrexone (n = 123 of 2110 [5.8%]). Median time receiving MOUD varied by medication: methadone, 59 days (IQR, 15-189 days); buprenorphine, 45 days (IQR, 18-128 days); and extended-release naltrexone, 31 days (IQR, 28-82 days) (log-rank test, P < .001). Younger adolescents aged 13 to 15 years and racially minoritized youths had consistently lower progression through the COC.

Conclusions and relevance: In this cohort study of Medicaid-enrolled youths with OUD, most did not receive timely, evidence-based treatment, and only 1 in 32 received sustained pharmacotherapy. Gaps and persistent disparities exist across the COC, particularly for youths of color, underscoring the need for policies and care models that expand equitable treatment access.

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Journal: PLoS One, 2026, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0360066

Authors: Peiyuan Liu, Tania de Jesús Espinosa, Elham Samami, Bernard Mensah, & Hermine Poghosyan

Abstract:

Background: Economic instability may shape substance use (i.e., cigarette use and cannabis use) among the adult population. However, their relationship remains poorly understood. This study estimated the prevalence of economic instability indicators (i.e., employment instability, received food stamps, food insecurity, housing insecurity, and threatened utility shutoffs), exclusive cigarette use (TU), exclusive cannabis use (CU), and cigarette-cannabis co-use (TCU), and investigated the associations between economic instability indicators and these distinct substance use patterns among adults aged ≥18 years.

Methods: This study used cross-sectional population-based data from the 2023 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) Marijuana Use and Social Determinants and Health Equity modules, administered in 10 US states. The 2023 BRFSS achieved a response rate of 44.7%. The sample included (unweighted n = 50,481; weighted N = 24,896,969) adults ≥18 years. The outcome variables were TU, CU, and TCU. Indicators of economic instability included employment instability, receipt of food stamps, food insecurity, housing insecurity, and threats of utility shutoffs. Weighted descriptive statistics and multivariable multinomial logistic regression analyses were conducted.

Results: Overall, 48.6% of the participants were aged ≤50 years, 52.6% were women, and 64.4% self-identified as non-Hispanic White. The prevalences of TU, CU, and TCU were 8.1%, 11.1%, and 3.6%, respectively. Participants experiencing employment instability, housing insecurity, or threats of utility shutoffs were more likely to engage in CU compared to TU or TCU (P ≤ 0.01). All economic instability indicators were significantly associated with TCU, with the strongest association observed for those who received food stamps (aRRR = 2.27, 95% CI: 1.75-2.94), which was also significantly associated with TU (aRRR = 1.55, 95% CI: 1.24-1.93). Threats of utility shutoffs (aRRR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.10-1.70) and housing insecurity (aRRR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.04-1.55) were significantly associated with CU.

Conclusions: Economic instability indicators are significantly associated with cigarette and cannabis use, as well as their co-use patterns among US adults residing in the 10 participating states. Effective, targeted public health interventions to mitigate substance use risk in economically precarious populations are needed. Healthcare providers should routinely screen for economic instability to identify individuals at high risk for substance use and provide them with social services and behavioral health interventions.

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