Many people do rely on pharmacological treatment for withdrawal, anxiety or chronic pain, but when communities have access to an overabundance of these medications, abuse appears to become more likely. If doctors prescribe too much medication or too many refills, excess drugs "are going to be sitting in people's medicine cabinets for someone else to take advantage of," Baker explains. For example, methadone poisonings were four times as frequent in 2006 as they were in 1999, a time period during which retail sales grew more than 1,000 percent, Coben and his team found.
Antidote unknown
Although the new report details the stark increase in the reported poisoning data, the true number of deaths and hospitalizations in which prescription drugs have played a role might be even higher, the researchers pointed out. The new analysis assessed cases only in which prescription drug overdose was listed as the primary diagnosis. Some prescription drug–related hospitalizations might be classified under other primary categories, and those who abuse the drugs were not always labeled as having been poisoned. Additionally, the researchers explained, many common terms such as overdose, misuse and abuse are not well standardized in hospitals.
"I don't have any sense that it's getting any better," Coben says. With drug companies reporting strong overall sales (including a 5.1 percent increase in U.S. sales in 2009 to $300.3 billion for 3.9 billion individual retail prescriptions), in fact, the problem might be getting worse.
The researchers noted that the details surrounding these hundreds of thousands of overdoses are unknown. The medical data used for the analysis did not include full toxicology reports that would reveal drug-drug interactions. And although the researchers found that the majority of the people hospitalized for poisoning with these prescription drugs were women, they did not have enough other demographic data to propose possible reasons for the overdose increases.
"What we really need is something other than the coded data," Baker says. She notes that researchers need to know more about the circumstances in which people are overdosing before effective prevention measures can be put into place.
"There's a need to have informational interviews with people who have had overdoses and survived them," Coben says. He hopes that future research will "raise some opportunities for interventions with these people."
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14 Comments
Add CommentGreat article. Given the 2006 ONDCP mandate to reduce prescription drug 'abuse' by 15% by 2008, I would say we, as a s asociety, have failed. Indeed, poisonings are one horrible consequence, but there are so many others -- addiction, trauma, DUI, loss of productivity, medical and social costs -- yet we as a society spend much of our resources on the lesser used substances of use -- cocaine, heroin, meth.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThere's no one solution, but perhaps reducing the sheer availability at the point of the prescriber -- are a month's worth of CII opioids really necessary for a tooth extraction? what IS the evidence for prescribing opioids for arthritis? lower back pain?
Of course, at the other end, treatment for addictions of all kinds is inadequate, and even more so in the new economy.
Linda Simoni-Wastila
Reducing the availability of legal drugs will not cure the problem, it will only send it to the black market...
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisEducation is the answer.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisFor example, APAP (acetaminophen - Tylenol, most of Vicodin) can easily be taken to overdose levels (destroys the liver), yet most people do not know this.
Drugs do produce harm sometimes as they are active products, not inert dummys such a placebo, and this is the reason why you have to work long and hard to obtain a permit to write prescriptions from Health Regulatory Authorities. If you endorse a situation as in Spain, where pharmacists do openly sell almost all prescription only drugs under the sole buyer request; who has the moral strenght to discourage people from bought and use of addiction drugs, and end as in the China under british rule, when they were several million opium dependents?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this1) How many OD's included alcohol? "DO NOT USE WITH ALCOHOL" is printed under,"Warnings."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this2) How many doctors who know their patients can't tell hypochondriacs and recreational users from real sufferers of pain? My doctor says he can see it in my face.
3) How many severe pain sufferers have lived in agony after being denied pain relief because some stranger misintrepreted their desperate plea for relief as drug withdrawel (which may have also been included?)
4) How many OD's would occurr if realistic drug education included how to use drugs (alcohol too, if you're going to use it) more safely and sanely rather than the archaic religious message of, "Just Say No."
When an unaccountable military government agency gets to make it's own rules and set it's own budget and keep confiscated property of the disobedient, it is a rogue agency. Without health or safety data they are selling fear of substances in replacement of a system where adults make those decisions and learn to handle or avoid problems.
1) How many OD's included alcohol? "DO NOT USE WITH ALCOHOL" is printed under,"Warnings."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this2) How many doctors who know their patients can't tell hypochondriacs and recreational users from real sufferers of pain? My doctor says he can see it in my face.
3) How many severe pain sufferers have lived in agony after being denied pain relief because some stranger misinterpreted their desperate plea for pain relief as drug withdrawal (which may have also been included?)
4) How many OD's would occur if realistic drug education included how to use drugs (alcohol too, if you're going to use it) more safely and sanely rather than the archaic religious message of, "Just Say No?"
When an unaccountable military government agency gets to make it's own rules and set it's own budget and keep confiscated property of the disobedient, it is a rogue agency. Without health or safety data they are selling fear of substances in replacement of a system where adults make those decisions and learn to handle or avoid their own problems. Prohibition creates the problems and then milks us for money to "solve" them by assaulting
our own citizens.
What a racket.
When we will realize that the "science" of medicine defined efficacy of treatment by the elimination or reduction in specific symptoms, even if these symptoms are themselves defenses of the body. This "efficacy" is akin to unscrewing a warning light in your car and asserted that you've a "scientifically proven" method of treating cars that are sick.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this"Side effects" are not really "side effects." They are the result of the effective suppression of a symptom and of the disease, creating a more serious illness. An increase in death rates is totally predictable...and will be getting worse as a result of an increase in polypharmacy.
around the ansyogen break in your life, regressive's effect of cannabis use can delivery in the time, ecocerebral time-defect
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisor progressive delucidation...
Did any body notice if the ones that overdosed were the ones prescribed the medication?People lIke myself who have cronic pain don't abuse ,because when you over use there isn't enough left for when you need it,being given just enough to subdue the pain is is the usual treatment,the pain isn't gone just reduced so it becomes bearable,people stealing these kind of drugs don't understand that the pain doesn't stop completely and keep taking more untill an overdose happens.You must keep theses kind of drugs under lock and key to protect freinds and family who don't unerstand the dangers!!!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisMany people who suffer from chronic pain do not "abuse" the prescription drugs but they are at very high risk of becoming dependant on these pain killers. What I don't understand is how the government can continue to label marijuana users as criminals and the dealers that supply these users as scumbags when studies such as this show how extremely harmful the drugs the government is selling can be. Even today many senior politicians in the U.S still refuse to agree with the legalization of medicinal marijuana because they say we have "less harmful alternatives". Really? These drugs are less harmful or habit forming then marijuana? If so, why are many people going through rapid detoxification processes just to get off these "safe" drugs? The most recent example of this arrogance in the media was senator John McKain during the 2008 election. I think it's time we looked at some of these prescription drugs and decided what should be classified as truly harmful. I can still remember a number of years ago when pharmacies were being broken into almost every week by oxycontin addicts.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisHas anyone found the American Journal of Preventive Medicine study which indicated an increase in the rate of unintentional poisonings? I can't seem to find it online...
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI agree! Toay there are rallies for the reform of medical marijuana law going on in Philadelhia, Pittsburgh & Harrisburg (NOT ADDICTING) and which provides tremendous relief for chronic pain victims Of course, nothing was on our local news stations!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI have been going to pain management for over 10 years with intractable pain in my neck and mid back. When I first started going the doctor wanted to give me an epidural injection said it would take down the swelling so my body would heal. I did let them do it after telling her I didn't do well with steroids after all she was in control of whether or not I received anything to control the pain. Don't do it without your research. I had a very bad reaction I didn't know it then but I now know it cause me to have a stroke all I knew I wI have been going to pain management for over 10 years with intractable pain. When I first started going the doctor wanted to give me an epidural injection said it would take down the swelling so my body would heal. I did let them do it after telling her I didn't do well with steroids after all she was in control of weather or not I received anything to control the pain. Don't do it without your research. I had a very bad reaction I didn't know it then but I now know it cause me to have a stroke all I knew I was so sick I wanted to die and still and always will have lasting pain and suffering from it. It is my opinion that ever one would it is a mixture of steroids and polyethylene glycol, a neuro toxin, clinical antifreeze. People are dieing on the table from this injection massive heart attacks and strokes. Research it it is much worse if you die on the table you might die the slow death.Back to the subject at hand! 4 months ago my Dr was raid by the DEA, state and local law at gun point with patients there. They told him to surrender his DEAas so sick I wanted to die and still and always will have lasting pain and suffering from it. It is my opinion ever one would it is a mixture of steroids and polyethylene glycol, a neuro toxin, clinical antifreeze. People are dieing on the table from this injection massive heart attacks and strokes. Research it it is much worse if you don't die on the table you might die the slow death .Back to the subject at hand! 4 months ago my Dr was raid by the DEA, state and local law at gun point with patients there. They told him to surrender his DEA license or they would arrest him. To this day they have not charged him or returned his license to dispense class drugs. Therefore leaving him little way to help his patients. They left him with his state license so he can be a Dr but can't help his patient what the heck. He doesn't give the injection could this be the reason for this injustice? I don't know? This is not the only Dr. in Appalachia that has been done this way we have been left with NO help! WE are looking for doctors over a hundred miles from home and having to pay extreme prices for it. Understand the majority of us are not of large financial means and we are in extreme pain and withdrawing from a medication we have no choice but to take or your body reeks of pain and your family and friend suffer with you. Found one Dr. that moved to a fairly central area. Took insurance, got to his office and he only does the injection and short term pain meds. I choose neither what's the since. Also they want to take a urinalyses before you see the dr. stating it is the state law. I look up the law and it states that the dr must see signs of addictive behavior before they can ask for a urinalyses. How could they notice addictive behavior if they haven't ever set their eyes on you. They have left 100's if not 1000's of people with No help for their pain. Could this cause an epidemic of suicide and/or many more on the streets looking for relief? This is a cruel way to treat your fellow human being! Should this 50 year old grammy of 4 be in pain be subjected to this war on prescription pain meds? I never sold or gave my meds away I needed them. I still need them but have No way of getting them without losing my home. Remember there are hundreds maybe thousand of stories like this just in southern Appalachia.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhat the pharmaceuticals don't want anyone to know is that there are other answers to so many of our health challenges.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI suffered off-and-on with depression from my teens to my late 20's. When I was 27 it got to the point I was having a hard time functioning. Unwilling to continue living like that and unwilling to die I put all of my goals aside - quite a task itself - and committed to doing whatever it would take to find true healing.
I soon began what would be the most important journey of my life, a healing journey lasting over three years. This journey profoundly changed the rest of my life and slowly, healing episode by healing episode, brought complete healing to my depression as well as several other things, such as an eight-year lower-back problem.
I was on Prozac for a year of this journey and it stabilized my mind so I could do the work I needed to do to truly heal. When I went off the prozac the depression returned but by that time I new how to get to the true roots of my depression and heal them.
I have an essay on my website about the journey. Please check it out: http://www.dougthedrummer.com/content/view/9/38/