TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2016//
TI  - Seeking prescription opioids from physicians for nonmedical use among people who inject drugs in a Canadian setting
JO  - American journal on addictions
A1  - Kennedy, Mary Clare
A1  - Kerr, Thomas
A1  - Debeck, Kora
A1  - Dong, Huiru
A1  - Milloy, M-J
A1  - Wood, Evan
A1  - Hayashi, Kanna
SP  - 275
EP  - 282
VL  - 25
IS  - 4
N2  - BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Despite the high prevalence of prescription opioid (PO) misuse, little is known about the phenomenon of seeking POs for nonmedical use among high-risk populations, such as people who inject drugs (PWID). We therefore sought to examine the prevalence and correlates of seeking POs from a physician for nonmedical use among PWID in Vancouver, Canada. <br><br>METHODS: Cross-sectional data from two open prospective cohort studies of PWID in Vancouver were collected between June 2013 and May 2014 (n = 1252). Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with seeking POs from physicians for nonmedical use. <br><br>RESULTS: Of 1252 participants, 458 individuals (36.6%) reported ever trying to get a PO prescription from a physician for nonmedical use and, of these, 343 (74.9%, comprising 27.4% of the total sample) reported ever being successful. Variables independently and positively associated with PO-seeking behavior included older age (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.02), Caucasian ethnicity (AOR = 1.38), having ever overdosed (AOR = 1.32), having ever participated in methadone maintenance therapy (AOR = 1.90), having ever dealt drugs (AOR = 1.65), and having ever been refused a prescription for pain medication (AOR = 2.02) (all p < .05). <br><br>DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: We observed that PO-seeking behavior was common among this sample of PWID and associated with several markers of higher intensity drug use. SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: Our findings highlight the need to identify evidence-based public health and clinical strategies to mitigate PO misuse among PWID without compromising care for PWID with legitimate medical concerns. (Am J Addict 2016;XX:1-8).<br><br>© 2016 American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1055-0496
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ajad.12380
ID  - ref1
ER  -