Author information

¹Department of Emergency Medicine, Alameda Health System, Wilma Chan Highland Hospital, 1411 East 31st Street, Oakland, CA 94602, USA; Division of Addiction Medicine, Highland Hospital, Alameda Health System, 1411 East 31st Street, Oakland, CA 94602, USA. Electronic address: esoremanderson@gmail.com.

²Department of Emergency Medicine, Alameda Health System, Wilma Chan Highland Hospital, 1411 East 31st Street, Oakland, CA 94602, USA.

Abstract

Substance use disorders (SUDs) intersect clinically with many infectious diseases, leading to significant morbidity and mortality if either condition is inadequately treated. In this article, we will describe commonly seen SUDs in the emergency department (ED) as well as their associated infectious diseases, discuss social drivers of patient outcomes, and introduce novel ED-based interventions for co-occurring conditions. Clinicians should come away from this article with prescriptions for both antimicrobial medications and pharmacotherapy for SUDs, as well as an appreciation for social barriers, to care for these patients.