Incarceration history and opioid use among adults living with HIV and chronic pain: a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study

• Published in: Health & justice Vol. 12; no. 1; pp. 24 - 9
• Main Authors: Lichtiger, Anna B., Deng, Yuting, Zhang, Chenshu, Groeger, Justina, Perez, Hector R., Nangia, Gayatri, Prinz, Melanie, Richard, Emma, Glenn, Matthew, De La Cruz, Ana Alicia, Pazmino, Ariana, Cunningham, Chinazo O., Amico, K Rivet, Fox, Aaron, Starrels, Joanna L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 29.05.2024; Springer Nature B.V; BMC
• Subjects: Adults; Chronic pain; Cohort analysis; Community and Environmental Psychology; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Drug use; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Imprisonment; Incarceration; Law and Criminolgy; Narcotics; Opioids; Public Health; Research Article; Secondary analysis; Social Policy; Substance use; Substance use disorder; Incarceration; HIV; Chronic pain; Opioids
• ISSN: 2194-7899; 2194-7899
• DOI: 10.1186/s40352-024-00272-x

Background Adults living with HIV have disproportionately high chronic pain, prescription opioid use, history of substance use, and incarceration. While incarceration can have long-lasting health impacts, prior studies have not examined whether distant (>1 year prior) incarceration is associated with opioid use for chronic pain, or with opioid misuse or opioid use disorder among people living with HIV and chronic pain. Methods We conducted a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study of adults living with HIV and chronic pain. The independent variables were any distant incarceration and drug-related distant incarceration (both dichotomous). Dependent variables were current long-term opioid therapy, current opioid misuse, and current opioid use disorder. A series of multivariate logistic regression models were conducted, adjusting for covariates. Results In a cohort of 148 participants, neither distant incarceration nor drug-related incarceration history were associated with current long-term opioid therapy. Distant incarceration was associated with current opioid misuse (AOR 3.28; 95% CI: 1.41-7.61) and current opioid use disorder (AOR 4.40; 95% CI: 1.54-12.56). Drug-related incarceration history was also associated with current opioid misuse (AOR 4.31; 95% CI: 1.53-12.17) and current opioid use disorder (AOR 7.28; 95% CI: 2.06-25.71). Conclusions The positive associations of distant incarceration with current opioid misuse and current opioid use disorder could indicate a persistent relationship between incarceration and substance use in people living with HIV and chronic pain. Additional research on opioid use among formerly incarcerated individuals in chronic pain treatment is needed.