Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of recipients of opioid agonist treatment (OAT) in British Columbia, Canada, 1 January 1996 to 30 September 2018
| Characteristic | No (%) |
|---|---|
| OAT recipients | 55 347 (100) |
| Age group*: | |
| <20 years | 2210 (4.0) |
| 20-24 years | 8302 (15.0) |
| 25-34 years | 19 566 (35.4) |
| 35-44 years | 14 125 (25.5) |
| 45-54 years | 7508 (13.6) |
| >54 years | 3628 (6.6) |
| Female sex | 18 879/55 339 (34.1) |
| Health authority† of residence*: | (n=53 982) |
| Interior | 8725 (16.2) |
| Fraser | 19 464 (36.1) |
| Vancouver Coastal | 14 122 (26.2) |
| Vancouver Island | 9408 (17.4) |
| Northern | 2263 (4.2) |
| Comorbidity related to opioid use disorder*‡: | |
| Substance use disorder§ | 35 127 (63.5) |
| Alcohol use disorder | 10 786 (19.5) |
| Mental ill health | 35 381 (63.9) |
| Chronic pain | 30 063 (54.3) |
| Hepatitis C virus | 1472 (2.7) |
| HIV | 1267 (2.3) |
| Calendar year*: | |
| 1996-2000 | 9982 (18.0) |
| 2001-06 | 8064 (14.6) |
| 2007-12 | 13 627 (24.6) |
| 2013-18 | 23 674 (42.8) |
*
At first OAT dispensation.
†
Geographic healthcare delivery region.
‡
See appendix table A5 for ICD-9/ICD-10 codes used to identify concurrent chronic conditions.
§
Excludes opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder.