While use of a key federally approved medication for opioid dependence more than doubled in the U.S. over the past decade, its usage rate among teens and young adults actually fell, according to a new study. Accessing the IQVIA Real World Data: Longitudinal Prescription database, researchers examined prescription information for buprenorphine – one of three drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat opioid dependence – from retail and non-retail pharmacies for people ages 15 to 80 between 2009 and 2018. Based on that data, they calculated that the annual rate of buprenorphine use increased from 1.97 per 1,000 population to 4.43 per 1,000 in the 10-year time frame, but that the usage rate decreased among individuals between the ages of 15 and 24, from 1.76 to 1.40.
Read the full article: Study: Opioid Treatment Gap Widens for Teens, Young Adults //
Source: https://www.usnews.com/news/healthiest-communities/articles/2020-01-21/opioid-treatment-gap-widens-for-teens-young-adults-study