Opioid Use Disorder Affects an Estimated 2 Million Adults

Over one third of US adults reported using opioids in 2015, and approximately 5% reported misuse, according to a recent survey,

Researchers used data from the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health to examine opioid use and misuse in a cohort of 51,200 participants who were not institutionalized and completed the survey interview. Weighted estimates were used to determine the prevalence of opioid use, misuse, and opioids use disorders for the US civilian population.
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In 2015, an estimated 91.8 million (37.8%) adults in the US used prescription opioids, 11.5 million (4.7%) misused opioids, and 1.9 million (0.8%) had a use disorder.

Misuse of prescription opioids was reported by 12.5% of the adults using prescription opioids, of whom, 16.7% reported an opioid use disorder. Of those who reported misuse, 59.9% reported using opioids without a prescription and 40.8% reported that they obtained a prescription from a friend or relative for their most recent episode of misuse.

The most common motivation for misuse, reported by 63.4% of participants, was to relieve physical pain.

“More than one third of U.S. civilian, noninstitutionalized adults reported prescription opioid use in 2015, with substantial numbers reporting misuse and use disorders,” the researchers concluded. “The results suggest a need to improve access to evidence-based pain management and to decrease excessive prescribing that may leave unused opioids available for potential misuse.”

—Melissa Weiss

Reference:

Han B, Compton WM, Blanco C, Crane E, Lee J, Jones CM. Prescription opioid use, misuse, and use disorders in U.S. adults: 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health [published online August 1, 2017]. Ann Intern Med. doi:10.7326/M17-0865.