The Use of Once-monthly Injectable Buprenorphine for the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder in Postpartum Women: A Case Series

Objectives: For women with opioid use disorder (OUD), the postpartum period is an especially vulnerable period. Buprenorphine (BUP) improves OUD outcomes during this timeframe. Once-monthly injectable BUP (XRI-BUP) is a newer formulation for which evidence of use in postpartum women is extremely limited. We present a case series of 9 women who transitioned from sublingual (SL-BUP) to XRI-BUP in their first year postpartum. Methods: We conducted a retrospective chart review of our institution's medical record for patients who received at least one administration of XRI-BUP in their first year postpartum (January 2017-March 2020). Data were collected from baseline through mean follow-up of 281.4 days (range 235-417) for participant outcomes. Results: The most common indications for initiating XRI-BUP were participant preference (n = 9) followed by challenges taking SL-BUP (n = 6). Four of the 9 participants transitioned back from XRI- to SL-BUP during the study timeframe, for reasons including incarceration and undesired side effects. Preliminary treatment outcomes demonstrated that participants remained on SL- (n = 4) or XRI-BUP (n = 5) through follow-up. The 5 participants who remained on XRI-BUP had consistent negative urine drug tests for nonprescribed opioids during the study period. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study that reviews the feasibility of using XRI-BUP in postpartum women. Our results suggest that XRI-BUP is a viable treatment option, which should be further investigated in future studies of postpartum women with OUD.