# RFA-CE-22-011 -Understanding Polydrug Use Risk and Protective Factors, Patterns, and Trajectories to Prevent Drug Overdose - 2022

> **NIH ALLCDC R01** · SEATTLE-KING COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH DEPT · 2024 · $342,701

## Abstract

Drug consumption trends in the United States have substantially changed in recent years,
triggering a surge in overdose deaths. Efforts to address the crisis at the local level are
oftentimes focused on meeting the needs of persons in the most advanced stages of substance
use disorder (SUD), in part because this group is most visible at acute care, public health, and
social service sites and corresponding data systems. Intervening at an earlier stage of use
represents an opportunity to prevent drug use from progressing to polysubstance use, injection
drug use (IDU), SUD, overdose, and other severe health outcomes. However, the precursors to
drug use initiation and the patterns of consumption that follow are poorly characterized and the
factors associated with progression to severe outcomes are largely unknown. Illicitly
manufactured fentanyl (IMF) and concurrent use of opioids and stimulants are now at the core
of America’s overdose crisis, responsible for much of the recent increase in overdose deaths.
Specific consumption behaviors and corresponding rationale associated with IMF and co-
occurring use of methamphetamine and opioids are not well-characterized and may directly
correlate with overdose risk. We propose to conduct an exploratory sequential mixed methods
evaluation of drug use behaviors, patterns, trajectories, and risk factors in a sample of King
County, WA residents who initiated use within the past three years of a high-risk drug class
(includes illicitly manufactured fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, crack, and
prescription opioids or benzodiazepines used for a non-prescribed or euphoric purpose). Our
study will: (1) evaluate how and why polysubstance patterns emerge and evolve through one-
on-one semi-structured in-depth interviews, (2) describe polydrug use trajectories following
initiation of a high-risk drug class; and (3) quantitatively assess factors associated with
consumption of IMF and the concurrent use of opioids and methamphetamine through a case-
control study. The quantitative and qualitative results from our study will inform development of
novel early intervention strategies and development of methods to reach a currently hidden
population with overdose prevention programs and related evaluations.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10833993
- **Project number:** 5R01CE003466-03
- **Recipient organization:** SEATTLE-KING COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH DEPT
- **Principal Investigator:** Julia Elizabeth Hood
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $342,701
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-09-30 → 2025-09-29

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10833993

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10833993, RFA-CE-22-011 -Understanding Polydrug Use Risk and Protective Factors, Patterns, and Trajectories to Prevent Drug Overdose - 2022 (5R01CE003466-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10833993. Licensed CC0.

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