Temporal and Geographic Patterns in Opioid Abuse in Texas

Abstract

Opioid analgesic abuse is an increasing problem in the United States. All opioid analgesic abuse exposures reported to Texas poison centers during 2000–2010 were identified and annual and geographic patterns were examined. The annual number of opioid analgesic abuse cases increased 160% from 441 in 2000 to 1,145 in 2010. The proportion of total opioid analgesic exposures reported to be due to abuse increased 55% from 11.4% in 2000 to 17.8% in 2010. The opioid analgesic rate per 100,000 was highest (90.15) in northeastern Texas and lowest (27.91) in the southern part of the state.

KEYWORDS:

• opioid
• poison center
• temporal trend
• geography

Acknowledgments

Funding for this research was provided by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.