Prevalence of Prescription Opioid and Illicit Drug Use Among US Adult Workers and by Occupational Groups: NHANES 2005-2016

• Activity Number: 82 - Contributed Poster Presentations: Government Statistics Section
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Monday, August 3, 2020 : 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
• Sponsor: Government Statistics Section
• Author(s): JA GU* and Penelope Allison and Sara Luckhaupt and Alexis Grimes Trotter and Desta Fekedulegn and Claudia Ma and John Violanti and Michael E Andrew and Luenda Charles
• Companies: CDC/NIOSH - Morgantown, WV and CDC/NIOSH and CDC/NIOSH and CDC/NIOSH and CDC/NIOSH and CDC/NIOSH and University of Buffalo and CDC/NIOSH and CDC/NIOSH
• Keywords: Opioid; Illicit Drug; Prevalence; US workers; NHANES

Abstract

Objective: Our aim was to estimate the prevalence (Pr) and trend in prescription (Rx) opioid and illicit drug use among US adult workers. Methods: Self-reported Rx opioid and illicit drug use were obtained from NHANES 2005-16. Occupational data were available in 2005-12 and grouped by the Standard Occupational Classification System. Results: The Pr of Rx opioid and illicit drug use during 2005-16 was 4.1% and 10.2%, respectively. The Pr of Rx opioid use decreased significantly for those 18-29 years, less than high school education, college degree, and never smokers. The Pr of illicit drug use increased significantly overall and in those age 18-29 years (by 2%), females, Hispanics, heavy drinkers (by 1.2%), and current smokers. During 2005-12, the Pr of Rx opioid use ranged from 2.0% (farming/fishing/forestry) to 7.2% (personal care and service). The Pr of illicit drug use ranged from 3.5% (education/training/library) to 16.3% (food preparation and serving related occupations). Conclusions: Variation in Pr of Rx opioid and illicit drug across occupational group should be considered in conjunction with demographic and lifestyle characteristics to identify prevention priorities.