218 Online Social Listening Surveillance for Earlier Insights About Loperamide Abuse/Misuse, 2015-2021

Abstract

Loperamide (LOP) is a safe, effective antidiarrheal medication available over-the-counter (OTC) for over 30 years with a maximum dose of 8 mg/day for adults. Intentional LOP abuse/misuse (ingesting 70-200 mg/day to self-treat opioid withdrawal symptoms or achieve euphoria) was first reported in online forums in 2005. Following a 2016 US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Drug Safety Communication on the potential risk of cardiovascular adverse events with high doses of LOP, the OTC industry initiated a communications campaign (www.LoperamideSafety.org) to educate health professionals, including emergency medicine specialists, about LOP abuse/misuse awareness and prevention. Retrospective surveillance (eg, FDA Adverse Event Reporting System database and National Poison Data System) has traditionally been employed to track reports of drug abuse/misuse. We utilized modern online social listening technology to observe and analyze comments/conversations (posts) about LOP abuse/misuse on various websites and online social media platforms to gain earlier insight into potential LOP abuse/misuse. Utilizing the software tools Crimson Hexagon and Synthesio, we scanned thousands of publicly accessible user posts in online blogs, forums, and social networks – including major platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Reddit, and Forums – from January 2015 to March 2021 to observe posts about LOP abuse/misuse. Listening consisted of keyword-based scrapes of user-generated content using search terms including loperamide, Imodium, overdose, OD, get high, getting high, withdrawal, and related terms/phrases. Findings were analyzed and reported quarterly. From January 2015 to March 2021, there were 27,213 user posts regarding LOP abuse/misuse among all observed online platforms. Annual post volume peaked in 2016 before declining in 2019/2020, consistent with the pattern of annual intentional exposure cases reported by the American Association of Poison Control Centers. Over 2015-2021, there was an average of 390 posts per month. Since May 2018, Reddit contained the majority of posts (70%), followed by Twitter (18%), YouTube (6%), Forums (4%), Facebook (<1%), and other sites (<1%). Reddit and Forums accounted for an increasing percentage of posts over time with a decrease for all other platforms. Posts primarily addressed the use of high-dose LOP for easing withdrawal symptoms (73%) or seeking euphoria (17%). Posts about risks and dangers of misuse/abuse were 16% of Reddit posts from Q2 2020 to Q1 2021, with a peak of 22% in Q2 2020. Spikes in posts coincided with key events, including journal article publications regarding effects of high doses (2,499 posts in May 2016 and 830 posts in January 2017) and FDA Drug Safety Communications regarding abuse/misuse of LOP (650 posts in June 2016 and 1,400 posts in January 2018). Post volume also appeared to increase in relation to US COVID-19 infection rates in 2020/2021 slightly. Online chatter about LOP abuse/misuse rose from 2015 to a peak in 2016 before declining in 2019/2020, consistent with the pattern of reported annual intentional exposure cases. While not a substitute for epidemiological surveillance, online social media listening is a useful adjunct surveillance strategy for earlier insight into potential LOP abuse/misuse by observing and analyzing online comments/conversations, sentiments and contexts.