Substance use histories in patients seeking treatment for controlled-release oxycodone dependence

• Published in: Drug and alcohol dependence Vol. 76; no. 2; pp. 213 - 215
• Main Authors: Potter, Jennifer Sharpe, Hennessy, Grace, Borrow, Jennifer A., Greenfield, Shelly F., Weiss, Roger D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 11.11.2004; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Addictive behaviors; Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Alcoholism - epidemiology; Alcoholism - rehabilitation; Analgesics, Opioid; Biological and medical sciences; Comorbidity; Cross-Sectional Studies; Delayed-Action Preparations; Drug abuse; Drug Prescriptions; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hospitals, Psychiatric; Humans; Male; Massachusetts; Medical Records; Medical sciences; Opioid-Related Disorders - epidemiology; Opioid-Related Disorders - rehabilitation; Oxycodone; Pain patients; Patient Readmission - statistics & numerical data; Personal history; Prescription opiate abuse; Prescriptions; Psychoanalysis; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Street Drugs; Substance Abuse Treatment Centers; Substance-Related Disorders - epidemiology; Substance-Related Disorders - rehabilitation; USA; Massachusetts; Pain patients; Oxycodone; Prescription opiate abuse; Human; Drug addiction; Controlled release form; Psychology; Opiates; Narcotic analgesic; History; Substance use; Treatment; Addiction; Dependence; Dosage form; Psychiatry
• ISSN: 0376-8716; 1879-0046
• DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2004.05.001

The characteristics of patients currently abusing controlled-release (CR) oxycodone admitted for inpatient detoxification were ascertained from medical record review of 48 inpatients with CR oxycodone dependence. Patients were categorized according to the manner in which they initially received the drug: illicitly or by prescription for legitimate medical use. Fifteen of the 48 patients (31%) initially obtained a CR oxycodone prescription legitimately for a medical condition. While none of these 15 patients had a history of prior opioid misuse, they were more likely than illicit CR oxycodone users to report prior detoxifications ( P < 0.03) as well as a lower mean age of first alcohol use (legitimate = 11.7 versus illicit = 14.7, P < 0.05) and first illicit drug use (legitimate = 12.8 versus illicit = 15.8, P < 0.05). These findings suggest that a history of substance abuse is common among patients abusing CR oxycodone, including individuals for whom CR oxycodone was initially legitimately prescribed for pain.