Sex and race-ethnicity influences on opioid overdose deaths among veterans diagnosed with opioid use disorder between 2016 and 2021

IF 3.6 2区医学 Q1 PSYCHIATRY

Drug and alcohol dependence Pub Date : 2025-06-23 DOI:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112764

Amar D. Mandavia , Jennifer R. Fonda , Anne N. Banducci , Victoria E. Ameral , Rebecca E. Sistad Hall , Lauren B. Loeffel , Clara E. Roth , Tracy L. Simpson , Michael D. Stein , Brian P. Marx , Justeen Hyde , Michael Davenport , Frank Meng , Nicholas A. Livingston

{"title":"Sex and race-ethnicity influences on opioid overdose deaths among veterans diagnosed with opioid use disorder between 2016 and 2021","authors":"Amar D. Mandavia , Jennifer R. Fonda , Anne N. Banducci , Victoria E. Ameral , Rebecca E. Sistad Hall , Lauren B. Loeffel , Clara E. Roth , Tracy L. Simpson , Michael D. Stein , Brian P. Marx , Justeen Hyde , Michael Davenport , Frank Meng , Nicholas A. Livingston","doi":"10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112764","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objective</h3><div>Given increases in opioid overdose rates, and policy changes expanding access to medications for OUD, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we sought to understand how the opioid overdose epidemic impacted veterans with opioid use disorder (OUD), from 2016 to 2021.</div></div><div><h3>Method</h3><div>We examined the prevalence and trends in opioid overdose deaths, and age at death, from 2016 to 2021, by sex and race/ethnicity among veterans with OUD enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). We calculated the multiplicative and additive interactions between sex and age, and opioid overdose death.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>203,950 veterans enrolled in VHA from 2016 to 2021 had an OUD; 16 % (n = 32,640) died during this period. Opioid overdose contributed to 17.42 % (n = 5686) of all deaths. Although the total number of overdose deaths rose each year, the relative risk of dying from an opioid overdose decreased. Of those who died, veterans, ages 18–29 were significantly more likely to die of an opioid overdose than veterans over the age of 40. Female veterans were significantly more likely to die from an opioid overdose, with this risk manifesting significantly earlier and faster when compared to male veterans of the same age. Black and Asian veterans were significantly more likely to die by opioid overdose than White veterans.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Despite an overall decrease in relative risk of opioid overdose death during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2021) there was a significant increase in risk of opioid overdose death among female and racial and ethnic minority veterans with OUD.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11322,"journal":{"name":"Drug and alcohol dependence","volume":"274 ","pages":"Article 112764"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Drug and alcohol dependence","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0376871625002170","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PSYCHIATRY","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objective

Given increases in opioid overdose rates, and policy changes expanding access to medications for OUD, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we sought to understand how the opioid overdose epidemic impacted veterans with opioid use disorder (OUD), from 2016 to 2021.

Method

We examined the prevalence and trends in opioid overdose deaths, and age at death, from 2016 to 2021, by sex and race/ethnicity among veterans with OUD enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). We calculated the multiplicative and additive interactions between sex and age, and opioid overdose death.

Results

203,950 veterans enrolled in VHA from 2016 to 2021 had an OUD; 16 % (n = 32,640) died during this period. Opioid overdose contributed to 17.42 % (n = 5686) of all deaths. Although the total number of overdose deaths rose each year, the relative risk of dying from an opioid overdose decreased. Of those who died, veterans, ages 18–29 were significantly more likely to die of an opioid overdose than veterans over the age of 40. Female veterans were significantly more likely to die from an opioid overdose, with this risk manifesting significantly earlier and faster when compared to male veterans of the same age. Black and Asian veterans were significantly more likely to die by opioid overdose than White veterans.

Conclusions

Despite an overall decrease in relative risk of opioid overdose death during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2021) there was a significant increase in risk of opioid overdose death among female and racial and ethnic minority veterans with OUD.

查看原文本刊更多论文

性别和种族对2016年至2021年诊断为阿片类药物使用障碍的退伍军人中阿片类药物过量死亡的影响

鉴于2019冠状病毒病大流行期间阿片类药物过量发生率的上升，以及政策变化扩大了OUD药物的可及性，我们试图了解2016年至2021年阿片类药物过量流行如何影响患有阿片类药物使用障碍（OUD）的退伍军人。方法：我们研究了2016年至2021年在退伍军人健康管理局（VHA）登记的患有OUD的退伍军人中，按性别和种族/民族划分的阿片类药物过量死亡的患病率和趋势以及死亡年龄。我们计算了性别、年龄和阿片类药物过量死亡之间的乘法和加法相互作用。结果2016 - 2021年参加VHA的退伍军人中有203950人患有OUD；16% （n = 32640）在此期间死亡。阿片类药物过量占总死亡人数的17.42% （n = 5686）。虽然过量死亡的总人数每年都在上升，但死于阿片类药物过量的相对风险却在下降。在死亡的人中，年龄在18-29岁的退伍军人比40岁以上的退伍军人更有可能死于阿片类药物过量。女性退伍军人死于阿片类药物过量的可能性明显更高，与同龄男性退伍军人相比，这种风险表现得更早、更快。黑人和亚裔退伍军人死于阿片类药物过量的可能性明显高于白人退伍军人。结论：尽管在2019冠状病毒病大流行的头两年（2020-2021年）阿片类药物过量死亡的相对风险总体下降，但患有OUD的女性和少数族裔退伍军人阿片类药物过量死亡的风险显著增加。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Drug and alcohol dependence 医学-精神病学

CiteScore

7.40

自引率

7.10%

发文量

409

审稿时长

41 days

期刊介绍： Drug and Alcohol Dependence is an international journal devoted to publishing original research, scholarly reviews, commentaries, and policy analyses in the area of drug, alcohol and tobacco use and dependence. Articles range from studies of the chemistry of substances of abuse, their actions at molecular and cellular sites, in vitro and in vivo investigations of their biochemical, pharmacological and behavioural actions, laboratory-based and clinical research in humans, substance abuse treatment and prevention research, and studies employing methods from epidemiology, sociology, and economics.