Substance abuse treatment, prevention, and policy
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Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy · Jun 2011
Age differences in heroin and prescription opioid abuse among enrolees into opioid treatment programs.
In the United States, among those entering opioid treatment programs (OTPs), prescription opioid (PO) abusers tend to be younger than heroin users. Admissions of older persons to OTPs have been increasing, and it is important to understand typical patterns of use among those older enrolees. ⋯ Organizational and cultural phenomena (e.g., OTP characteristics) must be examined to better understand the context of individual characteristics (e.g., age). If nesting of enrolees within OTPs is ignored, then associations that primarily operate at the OTP level may be misinterpreted as exclusively dependent on individuals.