Moriya Asako S., Fang Zhengyi
Prescription opioids have commonly been used to treat both chronic and acute pain in the United States despite the fact that they are not recommended as the first-line treatment for most types of pain due to serious risks of opioid use disorders (OUDs) and overdose. As OUDs and opioid overdose deaths continue to be major public health concerns, examining the patterns and trends of the use of prescribed opioids can contribute to efforts to promote safer and more effective pain management. This Statistical Brief presents estimates of fills of prescriptions for opioid medications that are commonly used to treat pain obtained from the 2018–2019 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component (MEPS-HC). These estimates are an update of the 2015–2016 estimates presented in the previous Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Statistical Brief #515. The estimates only include prescriptions purchased or obtained in an outpatient setting. Prescription medicines administered in an inpatient setting or in a clinic or physician’s office are not included. The sample includes all elderly adults (ages 65 and older) in the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. (Statistical Brief 542 presents estimates of opioid use for non-elderly adults ages 18 to 64). We examine the average annual percentages of elderly adults in 2018–2019 with any opioid use (one or more prescription fills during the year) and with frequent opioid use, which we define as having five or more prescription fills or refills during the year. We present overall estimates for the full population of elderly adults and for subgroups defined by sex, race/ethnicity, poverty status, insurance coverage, perceived health status, Census region, and metropolitan statistical area (MSA) status. All differences mentioned in the text are statistically significant at the .05 level or better. Because of methodological and definitional differences, readers should use caution when comparing Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data with data from other sources. Details on the MEPS methodology and differences with other sources are included in the Definitions section of this Statistical Brief.
在美国，处方阿片类药物通常用于治疗慢性和急性疼痛，尽管由于存在阿片类药物使用障碍（OUDs）和过量用药的严重风险，它们不被推荐作为大多数类型疼痛的一线治疗药物。由于OUDs和阿片类药物过量死亡仍然是主要的公共卫生问题，研究处方阿片类药物的使用模式和趋势有助于促进更安全、更有效的疼痛管理。本统计简报提供了从2018 - 2019年医疗支出面板调查家庭部分（MEPS - HC）获取的常用于治疗疼痛的阿片类药物处方配药估计数。这些估计数是对之前医疗保健研究与质量局（AHRQ）统计简报#515中2015 - 2016年估计数的更新。这些估计数仅包括在门诊环境中购买或获取的处方。不包括在住院环境中或诊所或医生办公室开具的处方药。样本包括美国非机构化平民人口中的所有老年人（65岁及以上）。（统计简报542提供了18至64岁非老年人阿片类药物使用的估计数）。我们研究了2018 - 2019年有任何阿片类药物使用（一年中一次或多次处方配药）和频繁使用阿片类药物的老年人的年均百分比，我们将频繁使用阿片类药物定义为一年中有五次或更多次处方配药或续方。我们提供了全体老年人以及按性别、种族/族裔、贫困状况、保险覆盖范围、自我感知健康状况、人口普查区域和大都市统计区（MSA）状况定义的亚组的总体估计数。文本中提到的所有差异在0.05水平或更高水平上具有统计学意义。由于方法和定义上的差异，读者在将医疗支出面板调查（MEPS）数据与其他来源的数据进行比较时应谨慎。本统计简报的定义部分包含了MEPS方法以及与其他来源差异的详细信息。
