Dataset Information

Prescription monitoring programs and emergency department visits involving opioids, 2004-2011.

ABSTRACT: To determine the association between prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) implementation and emergency department (ED) visits involving opioid analgesics.Rates of ED visits involving opioid analgesics per 100,000 residents were estimated from the Drug Abuse Warning Network dataset for 11 geographically diverse metropolitan areas in the United States on a quarterly basis from 2004 to 2011. Generalized estimating equations assessed whether implementation of a prescriber-accessible PDMP was associated with a difference in ED visits involving opioid analgesics. Models were adjusted for calendar quarter, metropolitan area, metropolitan area-specific linear time trends, and unemployment rate.Rates of ED visits involving opioid analgesics increased in all metropolitan areas. PDMP implementation was not associated with a difference in ED visits involving opioid analgesics (mean difference of 0.8 visits [95% CI: -3.7 to 5.2] per 100,000 residents per quarter).During 2004-2011, PDMP implementation was not associated with a change in opioid-related morbidity, as measured by emergency department visits involving opioid analgesics. Urgent investigation is needed to determine the optimal PDMP structure and capabilities to improve opioid analgesic safety.

SUBMITTER: Maughan BC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4911899 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Prescription monitoring programs and emergency department visits involving opioids, 2004-2011.

Maughan Brandon C BC Bachhuber Marcus A MA Mitra Nandita N Starrels Joanna L JL

Drug and alcohol dependence 20150930

<h4>Objective</h4>To determine the association between prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) implementation and emergency department (ED) visits involving opioid analgesics.<h4>Methods</h4>Rates of ED visits involving opioid analgesics per 100,000 residents were estimated from the Drug Abuse Warning Network dataset for 11 geographically diverse metropolitan areas in the United States on a quarterly basis from 2004 to 2011. Generalized estimating equations assessed whether implementation of ...[more]

PMID: 26454836

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Project description:BackgroundAlcohol consumption may interfere with absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of medications and increase risk of adverse drug reactions (ADR). Studies report increasing prescription medication use over time, with many U.S. drinkers using alcohol-interactive medication. This study identified trends in incidence of U.S. emergency department (ED) visits for ADR with alcohol involvement (ADR-A), compared characteristics and disposition between ADR-A visits and ADR visits without alcohol involvement (ADR-NA), and examined frequency of implicated medications in such visits for 2005 to 2011.MethodsADR visits were identified through the Drug Abuse Warning Network, a national surveillance system monitoring drug-related ED visits. Analysis accounted for sampling design effects and sampling weights. Estimates are presented for totals (ages 12+), age group, and/or sex. Trends were assessed by joinpoint log-linear regression. Differences between ADR-A and ADR-NA visits were compared using two-tailed Rao-Scott chi-square tests.ResultsFrom 2005 to 2011, incidence of ADR-A visits increased for males and females ages 21 to 34 and females ages 55+. An average of 25,303 ADR-A visits ages 12+ occurred annually. Compared with ADR-NA visits, ADR-A visits were more likely to involve males, patients ages 21 to 54, and 2+ implicated drugs. Alcohol involvement increased odds of more serious outcomes from ADR visits. Central nervous system (CNS) agents were the most common medications in ADR-A visits (59.1%), with nearly half being analgesics (mainly opioid). About 13.8% of ADR-A visits involved psychotherapeutic agents, including antidepressants. Besides CNS and psychotherapeutic agents, ADR-A visits involved a higher percentage of genitourinary-tract agents (mainly for impotence) than ADR-NA visits. Sex and age variations were observed with certain implicated medications.ConclusionsED visits for alcohol-drug interactions can be prevented by avoiding alcohol when taking alcohol-interactive medications. Our results underscore the need for healthcare professionals to routinely ask patients about alcohol consumption and warn of ADR risks before prescribing and dispensing alcohol-interactive medications.

Project description:Study objectiveOpioid abuse and overdose constitute an ongoing health emergency. Many presume opioids have little potential for iatrogenic addiction when used as directed, particularly in short courses, as is typical of the emergency department (ED) setting. We preliminarily explore the possibility that initial exposure to opioids by EDs could be related to subsequent opioid misuse.MethodsThis cross-sectional study surveyed a convenience sample of patients reporting heroin or nonmedical opioid use at an urban, academic ED. We estimated the proportion whose initial exposure to opioids was a legitimate medical prescription and the proportion of those prescriptions that came from an ED. Secondary measurements included the proportion of patients receiving nonopioid substances before initial opioid exposure, the source of opioids between initial exposure and onset of regular nonmedical use, and time from initial prescription to opioid use disorder.ResultsOf 59 subjects, 35 (59%; 95% confidence interval [CI] 47% to 71%) reported they were first exposed to opioids by a legitimate medical prescription, and for 10 of 35 (29%; 95% CI 16% to 45%), the prescription came from an ED. Most medically exposed subjects (28/35; 80%; 95% CI 65% to 91%) reported nonopioid substance use or treatment for nonopioid substance use disorders preceding the initial opioid exposure. Emergency providers were a source of opioids between exposure and onset of regular nonmedical use in 11 of 35 cases (31%; 95% CI 18% to 48%). Thirty-one of the 35 medically exposed subjects reported the time of onset of nonmedical use; median time from exposure to onset of nonmedical use was 6 months for use to get high (N=25; interquartile range [IQR] 2 to 36), 12 months for regular use to get high (N=24; IQR 2 to 36), 18 months for use to avoid withdrawal (N=26; IQR 2 to 38), and 24 months for regular use to avoid withdrawal (N=27; IQR 2 to 48). Eleven subjects (36%; 95% CI 21% to 53%) began nonmedical use within 2 months, and 9 of 11 (82%; 95% CI 53% to 96%) reported nonopioid substance use or treatment for alcohol abuse before initial opioid exposure.ConclusionAlthough short-term opioid administration by emergency providers is unlikely to cause addiction by itself, ED opioid prescriptions may contribute to the development of addiction in some patients. There is an urgent need for further research to estimate long-term risks of short-course opioid therapy so that the risk of iatrogenic addiction can be appropriately balanced with the benefit of analgesia.

Dataset Information

Prescription monitoring programs and emergency department visits involving opioids, 2004-2011.

Publications

Prescription monitoring programs and emergency department visits involving opioids, 2004-2011.

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