title: Self-reports of prescription opioid abuse and diversion among recreational opioid users in a Canadian and a United States city.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore behaviors related to prescription opioid abuse and diversion in individuals who self-reported past recreational (nonmedical) opioid use.
  
  
  METHODS
  A questionnaire was developed and included in two abuse potential clinical studies conducted in Canada (Toronto, ON, August 2010 to January, 2011) and the United States (Salt Lake City, UT, February-May 2011).
  
  
  METHODS
  Recreational opioid users.
  
  
  METHODS
  Self-reported behaviors related to prescription opioid abuse and diversion.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The questionnaire was completed by 174 participants in the Canadian study and 80 participants in the US study. Most participants reported that they used prescription opioids for nonmedical purposes a few times a month. Most had taken their first prescription opioid between the ages of 12 and 24 years and the two most common reasons were to treat pain or to feel high/stoned. When asked about specific opioids taken for nonmedical purposes in the past year, oxycodone, acetaminophen with codeine, and morphine were commonly used by both cohorts, whereas hydrocodone use was substantially greater in the US cohort versus the Canadian cohort. Participants reported various tampering methods and routes of administration, with swallowed whole, crushed and snorted, and chewed/crushed and swallowed as the most prevalent. Most participants indicated taking other drugs with prescription opioids to get high, most commonly marijuana and alcohol. The most common sources for obtaining prescription opioids were family/friends.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Two cohorts of recreational opioid users from Canada and the United States reported similar experiences with various prescription opioids and indicated a predominance of diversion from family/friends.
authors.affiliation: Senior Director, Pfizer Inc, Durham, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Beatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Setnik
authors.affiliation: Senior Director, Pfizer Inc, Durham, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Carl L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Roland
authors.affiliation: Vice President, Clinical Disease Area Expert-Pain, Pfizer Inc, Durham, North Carolina; Professor Emeritus, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Veeraindar
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Goli
authors.affiliation: Director, Statistics, Pfizer Inc, Durham, North Carolina.
authors.forename: Glenn C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Pixton
authors.affiliation: INC Research, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Naama
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Levy-Cooperman
authors.affiliation: INC Research, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Ira
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Medical Director, CRILifetree, Salt Lake City, Utah.
authors.forename: Lynn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Webster
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D013287:Illicit Drugs; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D055553:Prescription Drugs; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D013287:Illicit Drugs; D055553:Prescription Drugs