Abstract
Very little is known about the impact of age and gender on drug abuse treatment needs. To examine this, we recruited 2,573 opioid-dependent patients, aged from 18 to 75 years, entering treatment across the country from 2008 to 2010 to complete a self-administered survey examining drug use histories and the extent of comorbid psychiatric and physical disorders. Moderate to very severe pain and psychiatric disorders, including polysubstance abuse, were present in a significant fraction of 18- to 24-year-olds, but their severity grew exponentially as a function of age: 75% of those older than 45 years had debilitating pain and psychiatric problems. Women had more pain than men and much worse psychiatric issues in all age groups. Our results indicate that a "one-size-fits-all" approach to prevention, intervention, and treatment of opioid abuse that ignores the shifting needs of opioid-abusing men and women as they age is destined to fail.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 87-94 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 2012 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Sources of funding: Supported in part by National Institute on Drug Abuse Grants DA020791 , DA 21330 (TJC) , and DA21330 (SK) and an unrestricted research grant from Denver Health and Hospital Authority .
Keywords
- Age and gender influences on opioid treatment
- Age-related changes in treatment needs
- Opioid abuse
- Opioid treatment centers
- Prescription drug abuse
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Psychiatric Mental Health
- Medicine (miscellaneous)
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health
