Table 2.
Diversion sources, routes of administration, and motives for nonmedical use of prescription opioids: Positive versus negative screen for substance use disorders based on CRAFFTa
| Past-year nonmedical users of prescription opioidsb %c | Past-year nonmedical users of prescription opioids (+CRAFFT)b %c | Past-year nonmedical users of prescription opioids (−CRAFFT)b %c | Differences between past-year nonmedical users (+CRAFFT vs. −CRAFFT) p-valued | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diversion sources | ||||
| Obtained prescriptions for the medicine(s) from one doctor | 19.9 | 15.4 | 23.3 | p = 0.286 |
| Obtained prescriptions for the medicine(s) from more than one doctor | 2.1 | 0.0 | 3.5 | p = 0.290 |
| Wrote fake prescriptions for the medicine(s) | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | N/A |
| Stole the medicine(s) from a pharmacy or hospital | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | N/A |
| Given (for free) the medicine(s) from a friend (same sex friend) | 17.1 | 34.6 | 7.0 | p < 0.001 |
| Given (for free) the medicine(s) from a friend (opposite sex friend) | 6.8 | 11.5 | 4.7 | p = 0.177 |
| Given (for free) the medicine(s) from a family member | 28.8 | 19.2 | 34.9 | p = 0.055 |
| Bought the medicine(s) from a friend (same sex friend) | 6.8 | 19.2 | 0.0 | p < 0.001 |
| Bought the medicine(s) from a friend (opposite sex friend) | 6.2 | 17.3 | 0.0 | p < 0.001 |
| Bought the medicine(s) from a family member | 1.4 | 0.0 | 2.3 | p = 0.527 |
| Took the medicine(s) from a friend | 2.7 | 3.8 | 2.3 | p = 0.632 |
| Took the medicine(s) from a family member | 17.1 | 21.2 | 16.3 | p = 0.500 |
| Bought the medicine(s) from a dealer or other stranger | 2.1 | 5.8 | 0.0 | p = 0.052 |
| Bought the medicine(s) on the Internet | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | N/A |
| Obtained medicine(s) in some other way | 5.5 | 5.8 | 4.7 | p = 1.000 |
|
| ||||
| Routes of administration | ||||
| Mouth (oral) | 95.9 | 96.2 | 96.6 | p = 1.000 |
| Smoking | 1.4 | 1.9 | 0.0 | p = 0.374 |
| Snorting | 10.9 | 26.9 | 1.1 | p < 0.001 |
| Injecting | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | N/A |
|
| ||||
| Motives | ||||
| Because it relieves pain | 62.8 | 48.1 | 72.9 | p < 0.010 |
| Because it helps me sleep | 6.2 | 5.8 | 7.1 | p = 1.000 |
| Because it helps decrease anxiety | 4.1 | 7.7 | 2.4 | p = 0.200 |
| Because it gives me a high | 15.9 | 42.3 | 0.0 | p < 0.001 |
| Because it counteracts the effects of other drugs | 0.7 | 1.9 | 0.0 | p = 0.380 |
| Because it is safer than street drugs | 1.4 | 0.0 | 2.4 | p = 0.526 |
| Because of experimentation | 10.8 | 26.9 | 2.4 | p < 0.001 |
| Because I am addicted | 0.7 | 1.9 | 0.0 | p < 0.380 |
Positive (+) and negative (−) screen for substance abuse and dependence based on CRAFFT (car, relax, alone, forget, friends, trouble).
Due to missing values and “rather not say” responses, sample sizes ranged from 145 to 147 for past-year nonmedical users of prescription opioids, were equal to 52 for those nonmedical users who screened positive for substance use disorders, and ranged from 85 to 87 for those nonmedical users who screened negative for substance use disorders.
Totals exceed 100% because response categories were “select all that apply.”
Fisher’s Exact Test (two-sided) was used given some of the small cell sizes and a Bonferroni adjustment would require a p-value to be less than 0.05/27 = 0.001852.