Table 1. The characteristics of people on opioids by jurisdiction.
| Canada | United States | United Kingdom | Taiwan | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quebec | Alberta | Boston | Excl. low-dose codeine | ||
| Patient characteristic | N = 26,871 | N = 1,420,136 | N = 44,690 | N = 1,012,939 | N = 38,254 |
| Age at first opioid prescription or dispensation | |||||
| 18 and 24 years | 878 (3.3%) | 183,602 (12.9%) | 2,324 (5.2%) | 7,7305 (7.6%) | 2,110 (5.5%) |
| 25 and 34 years | 2,359 (8.8%) | 269,756 (19.0%) | 7,781 (17.4%) | 142,611 (14.1%) | 4,433 (11.6%) |
| 35 and 44 years | 3,048 (11.3%) | 262,824 (18.5%) | 9,072 (20.3%) | 174,624 (17.2%) | 5,277 (13.8%) |
| 45 and 54 years | 4,228 (15.7%) | 263,960 (18.6%) | 9,371 (21.0%) | 173,267 (17.1%) | 7,337 (19.2%) |
| 55 and 64 years | 4,439 (16.5%) | 221,175 (15.6%) | 8,410 (18.8%) | 162,455 (16.0%) | 7,433 (19.4%) |
| 65 and 74 years | 5,787 (21.5%) | 125,963 (8.9%) | 4,930 (11.0%) | 133,385 (13.2%) | 5,805 (15.2%) |
| ≥75 years | 6,132 (22.8%) | 92,856 (6.5%) | 2,802 (6.3%) | 149,292 (14.7%) | 5,859 (15.3%) |
| Sex | |||||
| Female | 18,406 (68.5%) | 740,512 (52.1%) | 30,121 (67.4%) | 585,306 (57.8%) | 21,290 (55.7%) |
| Male | 8,465 (31.5%) | 679,624 (47.9%) | 14,569 (32.6%) | 427,633 (42.2%) | 16,964 (44.3%) |
| Charlson comorbidity index | |||||
| Very low score (0) | 14,766 (55.0%) | 1,143,973 (80.6%) | 30,286 (67.8%) | 653,939 (64.6%) | 18,094 (47.3%) |
| Low score (1) | 7,230 (26.9%) | 191,054 (13.5%) | 7,939 (17.8%) | 206,422 (20.4%) | 10,714 (28.0%) |
| Medium score (2–3) | 3,677 (13.7%) | 69,525 (4.9%) | 4,427 (9.9%) | 109,381 (10.8%) | 7,557 (19.8%) |
| High score (≥4) | 1,198 (4.5%) | 15,584 (1.1%) | 2,038 (4.6%) | 43,197 (4.3%) | 1,889 (4.9%) |
| Comorbidity in 2 years before first opioid | |||||
| Depression | 5,404 (20.1%) | 190,402 (13.4%) | 3,895 (8.7%) | 88,486 (8.7%) | 801 (2.1%) |
| Substance abuse | 1,807 (6.7%) | 94,936 (6.7%) | 1,370 (3.1%) | 34,294 (3.4%) | 290 (0.8%) |
| Pain | 7,386 (27.5%) | 483,310 (34.0%) | 9,807 (21.9%) | 298,662 (29.5%) | 26,723 (69.9%) |
| Concurrent drug use on the date first opioid | |||||
| Gabapentinoids | 1,975 (7.3%) | 28,834 (2.0%) | 1,417 (3.2%) | 12,447 (1.2%) | 755 (2.0%) |
| Benzodiazepines | 5,360 (20.0%) | 57,671 (4.1%) | 3,211 (7.2%) | 71,041 (7.0%) | 6,980 (18.2%) |
| Antipsychotics | 2,268 (8.4%) | 25,060 (1.8%) | 650 (1.4%) | 22,479 (2.2%) | 1,232 (3.2%) |
| Antidepressants | 9,690 (36.1%) | 152,173 (10.7%) | 2,064 (4.6%) | 72,622 (7.2%) | 2,605 (6.8%) |