CAHSS Faculty Articles
Alternate Routes of Administration and Risk for HIV Among Prescription Opioid Abusers
Department
Department of Justice and Human Services
Publication Date
2011
Publication Title
Journal of Addictive Diseases
ISSN
1055-0887
Volume
30
Issue/No.
4
First Page
334
Last Page
341
Abstract
Route of administration is an important contributor to the adverse health consequences of prescription medication abuse. The current study examines characteristics associated with non-oral routes of administration among a large sample of prescription opioid abusers and explores needle-related human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) risk behaviors as well. In the study, 791 opioid abusers completed a one-time structured interview, including complete histories of illicit and prescription drug abuse and route of drug administration. The most common method of pill use was oral (91%), followed by intranasal (53.1%), injection (23.8%), and smoking (14.5%). The youngest prescription opioid abusers, ages 18-24, displayed significantly higher odds of using alternate routes of administration and of reusing nonsterile needles for injection. HIV prevention programming should be developed for young prescription opioid injectors.
NSUWorks Citation
Surratt, H. L., Kurtz, S. P., & Cicero, T. J. (2011). Alternate Routes of Administration and Risk for HIV Among Prescription Opioid Abusers. Journal of Addictive Diseases, 30 (4), 334-341. https://doi.org/10.1080/10550887.2011.609805
ORCID ID
0000-0003-4027-7840, 0000-0002-4716-3398
ResearcherID
K-3072-2014, H-3010-2014
DOI
10.1080/10550887.2011.609805