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Affiliation
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Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, 316 Physics Road, Room 238, East Lansing, MI 48824, United States. Electronic address: mitch777@msu.edu. |
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Abstract
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BACKGROUND: Little research examines risks of opioid misuse among military veterans, particularly among minority military veterans. The present study examines lifetime and past 12-month prescription opioid misuse among heterosexual versus non-heterosexual military veterans in the United States.
METHOD: Participants comprised 9729 U.S. military veterans aged 18 and older who completed the 2015-2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Sample weights were applied to yield nationally representative estimates in the target population. Design-based multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to examine associations between sociodemographic characteristics and risk of prescription opioid misuse.
RESULTS: Bisexual veterans reported greater lifetime odds of having misused prescription opioids in their lives compared to their heterosexual peers (AOR: 4.04, 95% CI: 1.72-5.38). However, only bisexual women veterans reported elevated risk past 12-month misuse (AOR: 3.47, 95% CI: 1.28, 9.41). Although veterans aged 50 and older reported lower risk of lifetime prescription opioid misuse relative to 18-34 year olds (AOR: 0.33, 95% CI: 0.25-0.44), older veterans showed greater risk of past 12-month misuse (AOR: 1.23, 95% CI: 1.02-1.49).
DISCUSSION: To our knowledge, this study is the first to systematically examine differential risk factors of prescription opioid misuse between heterosexual and non-heterosexual military veterans.
RESULTS from this study suggest a critical need for greater investigations into the specific risks of opioid-related substance use for military veterans. This study highlights areas of research and practice that can improve health outcomes for military veterans and their communities.
Copyright © 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Language: en |