Table 2.
ED Visits Due to Nonmedical Use of Pharmaceuticals, by Category, 2016a
| Category | Implicated alone or with other substancesb | Implicated alone without other substancesc | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual national estimated | Annual national estimatee | ||||
| n | % total visits (95% CI) | n | % total visits (95% CI) | % category (95% CI) | |
| Benzodiazepines | 167,845 | 46.9 (42.5, 51.2) | 23,335 | 6.5 (5.1, 7.9) | 13.9 (10.9, 16.9) |
| Prescription opioids | 129,863 | 36.2 (30.8, 41.7) | 40,499 | 11.3 (8.6, 14.0) | 31.2 (26.2, 36.1) |
| Antidepressants | 24,350 | 6.8 (5.5, 8.1) | 6,015 | 1.7 (1.1, 2.3) | 24.7 (18.7, 30.7) |
| Cough/cold or antihistamines | 23,966 | 6.7 (5.8, 7.6) | 9,675 | 2.7 (2.0, 3.4) | 40.4 (32.2, 48.5) |
| Nonopioid analgesics | 23,758 | 6.6 (5.4, 7.9) | 12,391 | 3.5 (2.6, 4.3) | 52.2 (45.5, 58.8) |
| Hypnotics (non-benzodiazepine) | 16,899 | 4.7 (3.8, 5.7) | 2,374 | 0.7 (0.4, 1.0) | 14.1 (7.8, 20.3) |
| Antipsychotics | 15,874 | 4.4 (3.4, 5.5) | 4,995 | 1.4 (1.0, 1.8) | 31.5 (25.6, 37.3) |
| Muscle relaxants | 14,731 | 4.1 (3.2, 5.0) | 3,114 | 0.9 (0.5, 1.2) | 21.1 (13.4, 28.9) |
| Gabapentinoids | 11,669 | 3.3 (2.3, 4.2) | ~ | ~ | ~ |
| Stimulants | 10,999 | 3.1 (1.8, 4.4) | 3,677f | 1.0 (0.4, 1.7) | 33.4 (22.1, 44.8) |
| Antihypertensives | 7,824 | 2.2 (1.6, 2.8) | 2,958 | 0.8 (0.5, 1.1) | 37.8 (25.6, 50.0) |
| Anticonvulsants | 4,828 | 1.3 (0.9, 1.8) | 1,966f | 0.5 (0.2, 0.8) | 40.7 (24.0, 57.4) |
| Antibiotics | 4,278 | 1.2 (0.8, 1.6) | 2,915 | 0.8 (0.5, 1.2) | 68.1 (50.8, 85.5) |
| Other pharmaceuticalsg | 16,775 | 4.7 (3.9, 5.4) | 6,978 | 1.9 (1.5, 2.4) | 41.6 (33.1, 50.1) |
| Total | 358,247 | 100 (N/A) | 122,195 | 34.1 (30.5, 37.7) | N/A |
Estimates are from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System–Cooperative Adverse Drug Event Surveillance project, CDC. Estimates based on <20 cases or total estimates <1,200 are considered statistically unstable and are not shown (~).
Implicated alone or in combination with other pharmaceuticals, alcohol, unspecified drugs, or illicit substances.
Implicated alone, without other categories of pharmaceuticals, and without alcohol, unspecified drugs, or illicit substances.
Annual estimates and percentages total more than 100% because a single visit may involve multiple pharmaceuticals from different categories.
Annual estimates and percentages total less than 100% because additional visits involve pharmaceuticals from different categories and additional visits involve alcohol or illicit substances.
Coefficient of variation >30%.
Other pharmaceuticals includes the following: vitamin and/or mineral supplements (n=32 cases), hypoglycemic agents (21 cases), neurologic agents (e.g., antiparkinsonian medications) (19 cases), gastrointestinal agents (e.g., laxatives, antispasmodics [e.g., loperamide], antacids) (14 cases), genitourinary agents (e.g., erectile dysfunction medications) (13 cases), endocrine/hormone agents (12 cases), anticoagulants/antiplatelets (9 cases), antirheumatics (8 cases), antivirals (4 cases), antigout agents (3 cases), analgesic supplement (e.g., kratom) (2 cases), and unspecified prescription or over-the-counter medications (117 cases).
ED, emergency department; N/A, not applicable.