Issue 19, 2006

Opiate-Related Drug Misuse Deaths in Six States: 2003

The misuse of prescription pain medications, especially those containing natural or synthetic opiates, is a problem attracting nationwide attention. According to the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 4.4 million persons aged 12 or older had used opiate pain medications nonmedically in the past month.¹ The consequences of this can be severe: in 2004, opiate pain medications were involved in an estimated 158,281 emergency department (ED) visits attributed to drug misuse/abuse.²

This report examines the involvement of opiates in deaths related to drug misuse in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maryland, Utah, and New Mexico. These States were selected because they participated in the Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) in 2003. DAWN is a public health surveillance system that monitors drug-related morbidity and mortality.³ Although DAWN is best known for estimates of drug-related ED visits for the Nation, DAWN also provides valuable information about drug-related deaths because of the participation of medical examiners and coroners in selected metropolitan areas and States. By analyzing States, deaths in rural as well as urban areas are included, and the State's population can be used to calculate rates.

DAWN collects data on all deaths where drugs played a role, either directly (such as an overdose) or indirectly (such as a fatal car crash where drugs were involved). A drug misuse death is defined as a drug-related death caused by homicide by drugs, overmedication, all other accidental causes, and where the cause could not be determined. This report includes all deaths related to drug misuse where an opiate (including natural and synthetic opiates) contributed to the death. Opiates include prescription pain medications as well as heroin, which is included because its metabolite cannot always be distinguished from the metabolites of other opiates. The drugs acquired through legitimate prescriptions cannot be differentiated from diverted prescription medications or illicit drugs because information on the source is not available.

The six States vary considerably in size and in the number of opiate-related fatalities. Maryland, the largest participating State, had a population of 5.5 million and 595 drug misuse deaths involving opiates in 2003 (Figure 1, Table 1). In comparison, Vermont, the smallest state, had a population of only 619,000 and 54 opiate-related drug misuse deaths. When population size is taken into account, however, it becomes clear that these States face problems of similar magnitude. Although the smaller New England States had lower rates of opiate-related misuse deaths than the three other States, the difference between Vermont and Maryland was only two deaths per 100,000 population.

Figure 1. State population and opiate-related drug misuse deaths: 2003

a) State population in millions: 2003 b) Opiate-related drug misuse deaths per 100,000 population: 2003

Source: a) U.S. Census Bureau; b) Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2003 (September 2004 update).

Because its data are from medical examiner records, DAWN is able to capture very specific information about drugs. The involvement of three opiate pain medications—oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone—is of particular interest (Table 1). Oxycodone was involved in 30 percent of the opiate-related misuse deaths in Vermont, but was relatively uncommon in Maryland (14%) and New Mexico (13%). The involvement of hydrocodone ranged from 3 percent in Maryland to 17 percent in Utah.

In five of the six States, methadone outnumbered oxycodone or hydrocodone in opiate-related misuse deaths (the exception was Vermont). Nearly half (46%) of Maine's and more than one third of opiate-related misuse deaths in New Hampshire and Utah (37% and 34%, respectively) involved methadone. In comparison, methadone was implicated in only 17 percent of the opiate-related misuse deaths in New Mexico. Methadone is used to treat addiction to heroin and other opiates and also can be used to treat chronic pain. As discussed above, DAWN cannot identify which type of methadone was involved in these deaths. Also, DAWN cannot distinguish the persons who misused methadone from the persons who were in methadone treatment and misusing other drugs at the same time.

In each of the six States, most of the opiate-related misuse deaths involved more than one drug (Figure 2). Utah had the highest percentage of polydrug deaths (93%), while Maine had the lowest (66%).

Figure 2. Polydrug involvement in opiate-related misuse deaths: 2003

Source: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2003 (September 2004 update).

In each participating State, more men than women died from opiate-related drug misuse in 2003. The proportion of males ranged from 58 percent in Utah to 78 percent in Vermont.

In the six participating States, opiate-related misuse deaths were not evenly distributed across age groups. In all of these States, the lowest rates were among the youngest and oldest age groups (under age 21 and 55 years or older) (Figure 3). In five of the six States, adults aged 35 to 54 had the highest fatality rates from opiate-related drug misuse. However, in Maine, young adults aged 21 to 34 had the highest rate.

Figure 3. Opiate-related drug misuse deaths by age group, per 100,000 population: 2003

Source: Office of Applied Studies, SAMHSA, Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2003 (September 2004 update).

The DAWN Report is published periodically by the Office of Applied Studies (OAS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). This issue was written by Elizabeth Crane (SAMHSA/OAS) and Scott Novak (RTI International, a trade name of Research Triangle Institute). All material in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission from SAMHSA. Citation of the source is appreciated.