1. Prevalence and Patterns of Nonmedical Use of OxyContin® and Other Pain Relievers
Director Peter Delany, Ph.D, LCSW-C Room Choke Cherry Road Rockville, MD 
Joe Gfroerer
Office of Applied Studies
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
Anesthetic and Life Support Drugs and Drug Safety and Risk Management Advisory Committees
November 13, 2008

2. National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH)
Representative nationally and in each State
Civilian, noninstitutional population, age 12+
Face-to-face interview, 1 hour
Computer-assisted, mainly self-administered
67,500 respondents each year
Survey changed in 1999 and in 2002, creating breaks in trend
Response rates (2007):
90% of Households selected
74% of Persons selected within households (85% for youth, 73% for adults)

3. NSDUH Data on Illicit Drug Use
Illicit drug use: Use of an illicit drug , or nonmedical use of prescription drugs; For each drug:
Recency of use
Lifetime, Past year, Past month
Frequency of use
Date of first use
Incidence/First time use within past year
Dependence and abuse
Based on DSM-IV criteria
Received treatment in past year for problem with drug

4. Nonmedical Prescription Drug Use: NSDUH Definition
“Not prescribed for you” OR
“You took the drug only for the experience or feeling it caused”
(Excludes OTC)

5. Prescription Drug Questioning Strategy
Primary focus is on therapeutic classes (TCs):
Pain Relievers, Tranquilizers, Stimulants, Sedatives
Specific pharmaceuticals asked for each TC:
Lifetime use only (except OxyContin® and methamphetamine)
Includes mix of brand-name and generic drugs
Done mainly to help respondents understand the TC
“Pill cards” show specific pharmaceuticals
“Any other drug” in the TC collected as write-in(s)

6. “PILL CARDS” Drug groups above the red line are asked separately
Drug groups below the red line are asked in tandem with follow-up to identify which one(s)
Any other drugs in TC are specified by write-in.

7. Percent Using in Lifetime
Lifetime Nonmedical Use of Selected Pain Relievers, Age 12 or Older: 2007
Ultram®
Methadone
Morphine
Demerol®
OxyContin®
Codeine
Hydrocodone
Percocet®, Percodan®, or Tylox®
Darvocet®, Darvon®, or Tylenol® with Codeine
Vicodin®, Lortab®, or Lorcet®
Percent Using in Lifetime

8. Nonmedical Pain Reliever Use: Trends and Patterns

9. Nonmedical Pain Reliever Use, Age 12 or Older: 2002 and 2007
Numbers (in Millions)
(13.3%+)
(12.6%)
(5.0%+)
(4.7%)
(2.1%)
(1.9%)
Lifetime Use
Past Year Use
Past Month Use
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2002 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

10. Past Year Nonmedical Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse
Past Year Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse and Treatment, Aged 12 or Older: 2002 and 2007
Numbers (in Thousands)
Past Year Nonmedical Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse
Received Treatment for Pain Reliever Problem During Last Treatment Visit, within Past Year
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2002 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

11. Past Year Nonmedical Use of Pain Relievers, by Age: 2002 and 2007
Percent Used in Past Year
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2002 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

12. Lifetime Nonmedical Use of Selected Pain Relievers, Ages 18-25: 2002 and 2007
Percent Ever Used
Darvocet®, Darvon®, or Tylenol® w/Codeine
Percocet®, Percodan®, or Tylox®
Vicodin®, Lortab®, or Lorcet®
Codeine
Hydrocodone
OxyContin®
Morphine
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2002 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

13. Lifetime Nonmedical Use of Selected Pain Relievers, Ages 26-34: 2002 and 2007
Percent Ever Used
Darvocet®, Darvon®, or Tylenol® w/Codeine
Percocet®, Percodan®, or Tylox®
Vicodin®, Lortab®, or Lorcet®
Codeine
Hydrocodone
OxyContin®
Morphine
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2002 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

14. Nonmedical Use of Pain Relievers in Past Year among Persons Aged 12 or Older, by Substate Region: Percentages, Annual Averages Based on

15. Source Where Pain Relievers Were Obtained for Most Recent Nonmedical Use among Past Year Users Aged 12 or Older: 2007
Source Where Respondent Obtained
Source Where Friend/Relative Obtained
Bought on Internet 0.5%
Drug Dealer/ Stranger 4.1%
Other 1 4.2%
More than One
Doctor 2.9%
More than One Doctor
2.6%
Free from Friend/Relative 6.6%
Free from Friend/Relative 56.5%
One Doctor
18.1%
One Doctor
81.0%
Bought/Took from Friend/Relative 5.9%
Drug Dealer/ Stranger 1.8%
Bought/Took from Friend/Relative 14.1%
Bought on Internet 0.1%
Other 1 1.8%
Note: Totals may not sum to 100% because of rounding or because suppressed estimates are not shown.
1 The Other category includes the sources "Wrote Fake Prescription," "Stole from Doctor’s Office/Clinic/Hospital/Pharmacy," and "Some Other Way."

16. Percent among Past Year Users
Sources of Rx Pain Relievers among Persons Who Used Pain Relievers Nonmedically in the Past Year: Combined 2005 and 2006
Free from Friend/Relative
Prescriptions from 1 Doctor
Bought from Friend/relative
Drug Dealer/Stranger
Took from Friend/relative
Prescription from 2+ Doctors
Internet
Other
Percent among Past Year Users

17. Initiation: First-time Use within the Past 12 Months

18. 2.7 Million Initiates of Illicit Drugs
Specific Drug Used When Initiating Illicit Drug Use among Past Year Initiates of Illicit Drugs Aged 12 or Older: 2007
Pain Relievers 19.0%
Inhalants 10.7%
Tranquilizers 6.5%
Stimulants 4.1%
Marijuana 56.2%
Hallucinogens 2.0%
Cocaine 0.6%
Sedatives 1.1%
2.7 Million Initiates of Illicit Drugs
Note: The percentages add to greater than 100 percent because of a small number of respondents initiating multiple drugs on the same day.

19. Past Year Initiates for Specific Illicit Drugs among Persons Aged 12 or Older: 2007
Numbers (in Thousands)
Marijuana
Sedatives
Pain Relievers
Cocaine
LSD
Tranquilizers
Heroin
Stimulants
Ecstasy
Inhalants
OxyContin®

20. Mean Age at First Use for Specific Illicit Drugs among Past Year Initiates Aged 12 to 49: 2007
Age in Years
Marijuana
Cocaine
Pain Relievers
Stimulants
Sedatives
Inhalants
LSD
Ecstasy
Heroin
OxyContin®
Tranquilizers

21. Past Year Pain Reliever Initiation, Overall and with OxyContin® or Morphine Use, among Persons Aged 12 or Older:
Percent of Population
Pain
Reliever Initiates
Pain Reliever Initiates with OxyContin® Use
0.05
0.04
0.03
Pain Reliever Initiates with Morphine Use
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2007 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

22. Tranqs, Seds, or Stims Nonmedically
Lifetime Use of Other Drugs among Past Year Nonmedical Pain Reliever Initiates, Age 12 or Older : Annual Averages,
Percent of New Pain Reliever Users
Tranqs, Seds, or Stims Nonmedically
Marijuana
Cocaine
Hallucinogens
Heroin

23. Tranqs, Seds, or Stims Nonmedically
Lifetime Use of Other Drugs among Past Year Nonmedical OxyContin® Initiates, Age 12 or Older : Annual Averages,
Percent of New OxyContin® Users
Tranqs, Seds, or Stims Nonmedically
Marijuana
Cocaine
Hallucinogens
Heroin

24. Tranqs, Seds, or Stims Nonmedically
Lifetime Use of Other Drugs among Past Year Nonmedical Pain Reliever Initiates Who Used Morphine, Age 12 or Older: Annual Averages,
Percent of New Pain Reliever Users with Morphine Use
Tranqs, Seds, or Stims Nonmedically
Marijuana
Cocaine
Hallucinogens
Heroin

25. Lifetime Nonmedical Use of Other Pain Relievers among Past Year Nonmedical OxyContin® Initiates, Age 12 or Older: Annual Averages,
Darvocet®, Darvon®, or Tylenol® with Codeine
Vicodin®, Lortab®, or Lorcet®
Percocet®, Percodan®, or Tylox®
Hydrocodone
Codeine
Morphine
Methadone
Demeral®
Percent

26. Nonmedical OxyContin® Use: Trends and Patterns

27. Trends in Past Year Indicators of Nonmedical Use of OxyContin®, Ages 12 and Older: 2004 to 2007
Numbers (in Thousands)
+ Difference between this estimate and the 2007 estimate is statistically significant at the .05 level.

28. Past Year Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse, with OxyContin® Use
OxyContin® Use and Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse with OxyContin® Use, by Age Group: Annual Averages,
Percent
Aged 12-17
Aged 18-25
Aged 26-34
Aged 35-49
Aged 50 or Older
Past Year OxyContin® Use
Past Year Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse, with OxyContin® Use

29. Past Year Nonmedical OxyContin® Use
OxyContin® Use and Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse with OxyContin® Use, by Gender, Age 12+: Annual Averages
Percent
Past Year Nonmedical OxyContin® Use
Past Year Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse, with Nonmedical OxyContin® Use

30. Past Year Nonmedical OxyContin® Use
OxyContin® Use and Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse with OxyContin® Use, by Race/Ethnicity, Age 12+: Annual Averages,
Percent
Past Year Nonmedical OxyContin® Use
Past Year Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse, with Nonmedical OxyContin® Use

31. Past Year OxyContin® Use
OxyContin® Use and Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse with OxyContin® Use, by County Type, Age 12+: Annual Averages,
Percent
Past Year OxyContin® Use
Past Year Pain Reliever Dependence or Abuse with Nonmedical OxyContin® Use

32. OxyContin® Use in Lifetime among Persons Aged 12 or Older, by State: Percentages, Annual Averages Based on NSDUHs
Source: SAMHSA, Office of Applied Studies, National Survey on Drug Use and Health,

33. Past Year Use of Selected Illicit Drugs among Past Year Nonmedical Pain Reliever Users and Nonusers Aged 12 and Older: Annual Averages,
Percent Using in Past Year
Marijuana
Cocaine
Hallucinogens
Heroin

34. Dependence and Abuse Among Past Year Users of Selected Substances, Ages 12+: Annual Averages,
Percentage of Past Year Users 28 28 17 14 14 13 12 9
Note: Percentages refer to dependence/abuse for each drug among past year users of that drug, except for OxyContin, which reflects pain reliever dependence/abuse among past year OxyContin users.