HJAR Jan/Feb 2023

38 JAN / FEB 2023  I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS   Healthcare Briefs who will be infected with multiple viruses — such as influenza, RSV, and COVID— at the same time. “The seasonal patterns of these infections are out the window post-COVID,” Hartford said. “We were seeing RSV all summer, and RSV is usually a late fall to early spring virus. We’re already get- ting bombarded with it. I feel like we can’t count on things acting like they have in the past, and it’s really hard to predict what’s going to happen.” Hartford concurs with medical leaders who believe measures the public took over the last two years to prevent COVID contributed to sig- nificant reductions in flu and RSV, but now that the majority of people are no longer as diligent about masking, hand-washing, and social distanc- ing, there appears to be a resurgence of respira- tory viruses. “We’re not even in peak season and children’s hospitals are already getting hit pretty hard,” Hartford said. “If it just keeps going like you’d expect your normal flu and RSV season to go, it has potential to be pretty bad, and I’m concerned about what that could potentially mean for hos- pital capacity.” That all leads to Hartford’s increased pleas for vaccination as well as good hygiene habits. While there is not a vaccine for RSV, there is for flu and COVID. The strains that are included in this year’s flu vaccine are expected to be a good match with the most common strains that are circulating. “Also, it’s important to remember that if you get vaccinated for flu and COVID and still con- tract either virus, you’re much less likely to have a severe illness than someone who is unvacci- nated,” Hartford said. “The vaccine gives your immune system a head start in the fight, so you shouldn’t get as sick or be sick for as long.” The influenza and COVID vaccines are now available and recommended for children six months of age and older, and boosters of the COVID vaccine are recommended for those five years and older. “Anyone who is around a baby who can’t get vaccinated, they especially need to make sure they receive their vaccine to help protect that vul- nerable individual,” Hartford said. “It’s also really important to just stay home if you have any cold symptoms at all. RSV could be just a sniffle for an adult, but if you pass that to a child, it has the potential to make them very sick. We all have to look out for each other.” UAMS Researchers Design App to Prevent Opioid Use Disorder Relapse A trio of researchers at the University of Arkan- sas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) have designed a smart phone application to decrease opioid crav- ings and optimize medication-assisted treatment among individuals with opioid use disorder. A prototype of the app, known as OptiMAT (Optimizing Medication Assisted Treatment), was one of five winning entries in the 2022 National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) “Product Proto- types to Combat Drug Craving” Challenge, a national contest of product prototypes designed to reduce drug cravings and prevent drug misuse, earning Andrew James, PhD, Ronald G. Thomp- son, PhD, and Mary Bollinger, PhD, an honorable mention and a $5,000 cash prize. “An estimated 40% of people with opioid use disorder return to opioid use within one year of initiating outpatient medication-assisted treat- ment. OptiMAT was created to help people man- age their opioid cravings and, hopefully, prevent relapse,” said James, an associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry and a neuroimaging scientist in the UAMS Helen L. Porter and James T. Dyke Brain Imaging Research Center. Opioids accounted for 68,630 overdose deaths in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Rural states like Arkansas are the hardest hit by opioid overdose because of higher opioid prescription rates and a lack of healthcare resources, resulting in an opioid- related mortality rate four times that of urban areas. Arkansas has the second highest opioid prescription rate in the country, with 75.8 prescrip- tions per 100 residents, compared to the national average of 43.3 in 2020. OptiMAT’s features include self-monitoring of daily opioid use, opioid craving, and mood; per- sonalized feedback on goal attainment; charts generated to depict self-assessments over time; health information and abstinence-supporting resources; tips to manage craving and avoid opi- oid misuse; and a GPS-driven “just-in-time” inter- vention when entering predesignated geograph- ical areas known to increase risk for opioid use. “Tracking daily medication use, mood, cravings and withdrawal keeps people aware of and accountable for their behaviors and the person- alized feedback on goal attainment reinforces sobriety and promotes engagement in medi- cation-assisted treatment for opioid use disor- der,” said Thompson, an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry. “The just-in-time intervention reminds the par- ticipant of their sobriety goals and encourages them to call a friend, family member or emer- gency contact and leave the area before they lapse back to opioid use,” said Bollinger, an assis- tant professor in the department of psychiatry. Funded by a $2.8 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the research team is currently conducting a controlled trial to test the effectiveness of OptiMAT among indi- viduals receiving medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder at the UAMS Center for Addiction Services and Treatment (CAST). LaurenM. Story-Hefta, MD, Joins UAMS Division of Vascular Surgery Lauren M. Story-Hefta, MD, recently joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) as an assistant professor in the Division of Vascular Surgery in the College of Medicine Department of Surgery. A Hot Springs native, Story-Hefta graduated summa cum laude in May 2013 from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia with a Bachelor of Science in biology. She received a Doctor of Medicine from UAMS in 2017 and, in June, com- pleted a residency in vascular surgery at UAMS. n Lauren M. Story-Hefta, MD