Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title/Conference

BMC Public Health

Volume

20

Publisher

BioMed Central Ltd.

Publication Date

6-22-2020

First Page

1

Last Page

9

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Abstract

Background

Prescription drug abuse (PDA) disorders continue to contribute to the current American opioid crisis. Within this context, our study seeks to improve understanding about stigma associated with, and symptom recognition of, prescription drug abuse.

Aims

Model the stigma and symptom recognition of PDA in the general population.

Methods

A randomized, nation-wide, online, vignette-focused survey of the general public (N = 631) was implemented with an oversample for rural counties. Logit estimation was used for analysis, with regional and county-level sociodemographic variables as controls.

Results

Individual respondents that self-identify as having or having had “a prescription drug abuse issue” were less likely to correctly identify the condition and were 4 times more likely to exhibit stigma. Male respondents were approximately half as likely to correctly identify PDA as female respondents while older respondents (55+) were more likely to correctly identify PDA, relative to those aged 35–54. Being both male and younger was associated with slightly more stigma, in that they were less likely to disagree with the stigma statement.

Conclusions

In light of the continued risks that individuals with PDA behaviors face in potentially transitioning to illicit opioid use, the findings of this survey suggested a continued need for public education and outreach. Of particular note is the perspective of those who have self-identified with the condition, as this population faces the largest risks of adverse health outcomes from illicit drug use within the survey respondents.

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