In a new study from the University of Cincinnati, researchers found that the United States has more than two dozen regional hotspots for opioid overdose deaths.
Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia, Indiana and Tennessee have the highest percentage of opioid overdose deaths, but researchers identified 25 regional overdose clusters nationwide.
They also found a link between fatal overdoses and mental distress. The findings highlight how the risk of overdose is both widespread and localized.
In the study, the team found that white men between 25 and 34 years of age had the highest risk of a fatal overdose, and there’s an increasing risk among Black men ages 30 to 34.
They also found a link between overdose deaths and mental distress, which increases the relative risk of a fatal overdose by up to 39%.
Researchers are trying to determine why fatal overdoses are more common in men than women, and why the risk is highest in certain age groups.
A major focus of health interventions for opioid addiction has been the distribution of the overdose reversal drug naloxone and other life-saving medications.
But the team says identifying vulnerable populations can be an effective prevention method.
In 2010, prescription opiates were often the culprit. At the start of the epidemic, most overdoses involved heroin. Now, more overdoses involve synthetic opioids such as fentanyl.
The findings could help policymakers and health care providers by identifying individual and community-level factors associated with an increased risk.
If you care about opioids and pain management, please read studies about common herb for treating opioid addiction and pain may harm your health and findings of a new method for pain relief without opioids.
For more information about opioids and your health, please see recent studies about taking opioids for chronic pain: here’s what the experts recommend and results showing that popular opioid pain drug may make your blood sugar unhealthy.
The study is published in PLOS ONE. One author of the study is Diego Cuadros.
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