[ad_1]
FRIDAY, Oct. 26, 2018 (HealthDay News) – In another disturbing picture of the opioid epidemic that is taking hold of America, a new study reports that nearly 5% of Older children and adults in Massachusetts suffer from a disorder of opioid use.
The study found that 4.6% of people over the age of 11, or more than 275,000 in the state, abuse opioids. This is nearly four times higher than previous estimates based on national data, according to the study's authors.
"Many people with opioid use disorders do not experience the health system, which, we know, is a barrier to understanding the true impact of the opioid epidemic "said Dr. Joshua Barocas, responsible for the study. He is a physician specializing in infectious diseases at the Boston Medical Center.
Opioids include prescription painkillers such as OxyContin, Vicodin and Codeine, as well as heroin and synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
The Massachusetts data analysis showed a steady increase in the rates of opioid-related disorders among those over 11 years of age: 2.7% in 2011, close to 2.9% in 2012, nearly 3.9% in 2013 and 4.6% in 2015.
The researchers said in a press release from a medical center that rates of opioid-related disorders were highest among people aged 11 to 25 years old.
The number of people with opioid use disorder increased from just under 64,000 in 2011 to more than 75,000 in 2012 and nearly 94,000 in 2013 to just over 119,000 in 2015.
Rural counties had some of the highest rates, including: Berkshire (6%); Bristol (5.8%); Hampden (5.3%); Barnstable (5 percent); and Worcester (4.4%). The rate in Suffolk County, which encompasses Boston, was 3.3% in 2015, the study revealed.
The increase in rates of opioid-related disorders is likely contributing to the continued increase in the number of overdose deaths in that state, the study's authors added. .
For the study, the researchers analyzed several sets of linked public health data, which allowed for a more accurate assessment of the impact of opioids in Massachusetts. This shows that better surveillance systems are needed at the local and national levels to provide more accurate data on opioid abuse, the researchers said.
Improved surveillance can help increase the number of diagnoses and treatment of these disorders, concluded Barocas and his colleagues.
The study was published online on 25 October in the American Journal of Public Health.
The study was funded in part by the US National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the School of Medicine at Boston University.
More information
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have more on the opioid epidemic.
SOURCE: Boston Medical Center, press release, October 25, 2018
[ad_2]Source link
