• Pain Med · Oct 2011

    Patterns and correlates of prescription opioid use in OEF/OIF veterans with chronic noncancer pain.

    • Tara A Macey, Benjamin J Morasco, Jonathan P Duckart, and Steven K Dobscha.
    • Mental Health and Clinical Neurosciences Division, Portland VA Medical Center, Portland, Oregon 97239, USA.
    • Pain Med. 2011 Oct 1;12(10):1502-9.

    ObjectivesLittle is known about the treatment Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) veterans receive for chronic noncancer pain (CNCP). We sought to describe the prevalence of prescription opioid use, types, and doses of opioids received and to identify correlates of receiving prescription opioids for CNCP among OEF/OIF veterans.DesignRetrospective review of Veterans Affairs (VA) administrative data.SettingAmbulatory clinics within a VA regional health care network.PatientsOEF/OIF veterans who had at least three elevated pain screening scores within a 12-month period in 2008. Within this group, those prescribed opioids (N = 485) over the next 12 months were compared with those not prescribed opioids (N = 277). In addition, patients receiving opioids short term (<90 days, N = 284) were compared with patients receiving them long term (≥90 consecutive days, N = 201).ResultsOf 762 OEF/OIF veterans with CNCP, 64% were prescribed at least one opioid medication over the 12 months following their index dates. Of those prescribed an opioid, 59% were prescribed opioids short term and 41% were prescribed opioids long term. The average morphine-equivalent opioid dose for short-term users was 23.7 mg (standard deviation [SD] = 20.5) compared with 40.8 mg (SD = 36.1) for long-term users (P < 0.001). Fifty-one percent of long-term opioid users were prescribed short-acting opioids only, and one-third were also prescribed sedative hypnotics. In adjusted analyses, diagnoses of low back pain, migraine headache, posttraumatic stress disorder, and nicotine use disorder were associated with an increased likelihood of receiving an opioid prescription.ConclusionPrescription opioid use is common among OEF/OIF veterans with CNCP and is associated with several pain diagnoses and medical conditions.Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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