NCHS data brief
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Opioid analgesics are primarily used to treat chronic and acute pain and, when used appropriately, can be an important part of treatment (1). Pain is a major symptom of patients visiting the emergency department (ED), with up to 42% of ED visits being related to pain (2). Opioids may either be administered in the ED as part of treatment, provided post-treatment in the form of a prescription, or both (3). This report compares rates and percentages of ED visits by adults at which opioids were only given in the ED, only prescribed at discharge, or both, by selected characteristics.
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Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey •The prevalence of low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was significantly higher among adults who did not meet recommended physical activity guidelines (21.0%) than adults who met the guidelines (17.7%). •Low HDL cholesterol prevalence differed significantly for both men and women by adherence to physical activity guidelines. •Prevalence of low HDL cholesterol declined as age increased for both those who did and did not meet the physical activity guidelines. •Non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black adults who did not meet the physical activity guidelines had a higher prevalence than those who met the guidelines. •Low HDL cholesterol prevalence declined with increasing education level regardless of adherence to physical activity guidelines. Regular physical activity can improve cholesterol levels among adults, including increasing high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (1). HDL cholesterol is known as "good" cholesterol because high levels can reduce cardiovascular disease risk (2). ⋯ Adherence to these guidelines is expected to decrease the prevalence of low HDL cholesterol levels (4-8). This report presents national data for 2011-2014 on low HDL cholesterol prevalence among U. S. adults aged 20 and over, by whether they met these guidelines.
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Key findings Data from the National Vital Statistics System, Mortality ● The age-adjusted rate of drug overdose deaths in the United States in 2015 (16.3 per 100,000) was more than 2.5 times the rate in 1999 (6.1). ● Drug overdose death rates increased for all age groups, with the greatest percentage increase among adults aged 55-64 (from 4.2 per 100,000 in 1999 to 21.8 in 2015). In 2015, adults aged 45-54 had the highest rate (30.0). ● In 2015, the age-adjusted rate of drug overdose deaths among non-Hispanic white persons (21.1 per 100,000) was nearly 3.5 times the rate in 1999 (6.2). ● The four states with the highest age-adjusted drug overdose death rates in 2015 were West Virginia (41.5), New Hampshire (34.3), Kentucky (29.9), and Ohio (29.9). ● In 2015, the percentage of drug overdose deaths involving heroin (25%) was triple the percentage in 2010 (8%). Deaths from drug overdose have been identified as a significant public health burden in the United States in recent years (1-4). This report uses data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) to highlight recent trends in drug overdose deaths, describing demographic and geographic patterns as well as the types of drugs involved.
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Data from the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, 2012 •In 2012, 33% of emergency department (ED) visits in the United States made by adults aged 18-64 had private insurance as the expected source of payment. This percentage was lower for Illinois than for the total United States. •In 2012, 21% of ED visits made by adults aged 18-64 had Medicaid as the expected source of payment. This percentage varied across the five most populous states, ranging from 12% in Texas to 30% in New York. •In 2012, 20% of ED visits in the United States were made by adults aged 18-64 with no insurance (self-pay, no charge, charity, or a combination of these types were the only reported expected sources of payment). This percentage varied across the five most populous states, ranging from 15% in New York to 28% in Texas.
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In 2012-2013, 55% of all unintentional injury deaths among adults aged 65 and over were due to falls. From 2000 through 2013, the age-adjusted fall injury death rate among adults aged 65 and over nearly doubled from 29.6 per 100,000 to 56.7 per 100,000. ⋯ Among adults aged 65 and over, the death rate due to fire was more than twice as high for non-Hispanic black adults as for non-Hispanic white and Hispanic adults. The death rate from motor vehicle traffic crashes among adults aged 65 and over was 1.7 times higher in nonmetropolitan areas compared with metropolitan areas.