The University of Texas at Austin Steve Hicks School of Social Work, Austin, TX, 78702, United States.
The University of Texas at Austin Steve Hicks School of Social Work, Austin, TX, 78702, United States.
Drug Alcohol Depend. 2021 Jun 1;223:108705. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2021.108705. Epub 2021 Apr 10.
This study examined associations of mental health treatment use and perceived treatment need with cannabis use characteristics (medical vs. nonmedical use, initiation age, use frequency, and cannabis use disorder) among past-year cannabis users aged 50+.
Data came from the 2015-2019 National Survey of Drug Use and Health (N = 44,007). After comparing past-year cannabis users with nonusers and nonmedical users with medical users on sociodemographic and health-related factors, the research questions were examined with logistic regression models.
In addition to mental disorders, medical use, compared to nonmedical use, was associated with higher odds of psychotherapeutic prescription medication use (AOR = 1.47, 95 % CI = 1.07-2.01) and any mental health treatment (prescription medication, outpatient care and/or inpatient care) (AOR = 1.51, 95 % CI = 1.13-2.03). Compared to 1-29 days of use, nonmedical users who used on 100-199 days (AOR = 0.60, 95 % CI = 0.40-0.89) and medical users who used on 200-365 days users (AOR = 0.48, 95 % CI = 0.26-0.87) had lower odds of treatment receipt. Factors associated with increased odds of receiving treatment included discussion with a healthcare professional about drug use, higher education, and having health insurance. Other illicit drug use, chronic illnesses, and female gender were associated with higher odds of perceived treatment need, while having health insurance was associated with lower odds.
Some older adults may use medical cannabis as an adjunct to professional mental health treatment while others may use it as a substitute. Affordability and accessibility gaps followed by cultural and personal sense of stigma and self-sufficiency beliefs appear to be barriers to receiving professional care.
本研究考察了心理健康治疗的使用情况以及治疗需求与 50 岁以上过去一年的大麻使用者的大麻使用特征（医疗用与非医疗用、起始年龄、使用频率和大麻使用障碍）之间的关联。
数据来自 2015-2019 年全国毒品使用和健康调查（N=44007）。在比较过去一年的大麻使用者与非使用者以及非医用大麻使用者与医用大麻使用者的社会人口统计学和健康相关因素后，使用逻辑回归模型检验了研究问题。
除了精神障碍外，与非医用大麻相比，医用大麻的使用与更高的接受心理治疗处方药使用的可能性相关（优势比 [AOR] =1.47，95%置信区间 [CI] =1.07-2.01）和任何心理健康治疗（处方药、门诊护理和/或住院治疗）（AOR =1.51，95%CI =1.13-2.03）。与使用 1-29 天相比，非医用大麻使用者使用 100-199 天的可能性（AOR=0.60，95%CI =0.40-0.89）和医用大麻使用者使用 200-365 天的可能性（AOR=0.48，95%CI =0.26-0.87）较低。与接受治疗的可能性增加相关的因素包括与医疗保健专业人员讨论药物使用、较高的教育程度和拥有医疗保险。其他非法药物使用、慢性疾病和女性性别与更高的治疗需求可能性相关，而拥有医疗保险与更低的可能性相关。
一些老年人可能将医用大麻作为专业心理健康治疗的辅助手段，而另一些人可能将其作为替代品。负担能力和可及性差距，其次是文化和个人耻辱感以及自给自足的信念，似乎是接受专业护理的障碍。
