# Opioid Use Disorder Stigma Mechanisms in the Context of Buprenorphine Treatment

> **NIH NIH R61** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · 2020 · $145,231

## Abstract

Abstract
The opioid epidemic has become one of the most pervasive threats to health and survival in the U.S.
Medications for the treatment of opioid use disorders (MOUD) are the gold standard treatment, with robust
evidence of effectiveness in reducing opioid use, opioid overdose risk and opioid-related deaths. Nevertheless,
retention and adherence to MOUD treatment, particularly buprenorphine (BUP), are discouragingly low; as
such, novel, cost-effective, scalable intervention approaches to increase and sustain retention and adherence
to BUP treatment are urgently needed. Although stigma surrounding the use of buprenorphine (BUP) for the
treatment of OUD has yet to be characterized, stigma associated with methadone maintenance treatment is
quite strong, and has deleterious effects on treatment retention and outcomes. Given the rapid expansion of
BUP's accessibility and its emergence alongside methadone as a gold standard for OUD treatment, research
is needed to understand the nature of stigma related to BUP treatment, its impact on engagement, retention,
and outcomes of BUP treated individuals, and ultimately, to inform stigma focused interventions. With NCCIH
support, the PI's parent R61 award focuses on development and usability testing of imFREE (Interactive
Messaging for Freedom from Opioid Addiction), a CBT-based mHealth intervention that addresses critical
barriers to retention and adherence to BUP treatment, in preparation for an effectiveness trial among
individuals who are initiating BUP. In the proposed supplement application, based upon HIV Stigma Theory,
we propose to: (a) adapt psychometrically validated measures from the HIV literature assessing internalized,
anticipated, and enacted HIV stigma, for use in assessing opioid use disorder (OUD) stigma, and (b) with user
input, develop intervention content targeting OUD stigma, to be incorporated in our final mHealth intervention
refinement phase of the parent R61, prior to initiation of our effectiveness trial in the subsequent R33 phase.
This application is an excellent fit as a response to NOT-OD-20-101, “Administrative Supplements to Support
Strategies to Reduce Stigma in Pain Management and Opioid Use Disorders (OUD) and Treatment,” which
encourages use of “existing psychometrically validated tools to measure stigma in other populations (e.g., HIV)
and their application to these populations” as well as “the adaption and application of existing theories of health
related stigma to…OUD in reducing stigma.” Consistent with the objectives of the NOSI, the proposed
supplemental research builds upon the parent R61, expanding our mHealth intervention with stigma relevant
content to bolster retention and adherence to BUP. By providing support to address stigma and maximize BUP
treatment adherence, the supplemental research may provide a cost-effective, easily deployable strategy for
reducing stigma at the individual level among those affected by OUD, thereby facilitating prevention of
over...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10176016
- **Project number:** 3R61AT010800-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES
- **Principal Investigator:** Suzette V Glasner
- **Activity code:** R61 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $145,231
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-09-28 → 2021-06-14

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10176016

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10176016, Opioid Use Disorder Stigma Mechanisms in the Context of Buprenorphine Treatment (3R61AT010800-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10176016. Licensed CC0.

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