Prescription Drug Abuse Analysis
Prescription drug overdose and abuse is a common problem faced by many individuals today. According to the CDC (2013), prescription drug overdose and abuse has increased exponentially since the 1980s. In 2009, the prescription drug overdose was five times that in 1980. Deaths due to drug overdose exceeded those due to motor vehicle accidents for the first time in 2009. The majority of these deaths were attributable to opioid overdose. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, approximately 52 million people have abused prescription drugs at least once in their lifetimes. The trend of abuse has been seen increasingly in teenagers and adolescents, and as high as 1 in 12 high school students reported using Vicodin for non-prescription use. The most commonly used drugs according to the CDC for
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Causes of Prescription Drug Abuse and Their Effects
Pre-Existing Mental Illness as a Cause
Abuse of prescription drugs is a multi-factorial problem with factors such as age, gender, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic factors, and patient factors such as history of chronic pain playing a role.
People with the history of pre-existing mental illness such as depression or anxiety who are put on drugs such as benzodiapines are more likely to start abusing the drugs on long-term use. Here, the cause of abuse is long-term use of prescription drugs for legitimate mental conditions that warrant their use (CDC, 2013).
The typical history in these patients is that they increase the dosage of drugs without consulting their physicians. Sometimes, a drug that is prescribed for a specific illness such as panic or anxiety disorder also has other uses such as sleep induction. Patients increase the dose to seek these benefits.
Results of Abusing Prescription Drugs by People with Pre-Existing Mental
Causes of Prescription Drug Abuse and Their Effects
Pre-Existing Mental Illness as a Cause
Abuse of prescription drugs is a multi-factorial problem with factors such as age, gender, race and ethnicity, socioeconomic factors, and patient factors such as history of chronic pain playing a role.
People with the history of pre-existing mental illness such as depression or anxiety who are put on drugs such as benzodiapines are more likely to start abusing the drugs on long-term use. Here, the cause of abuse is long-term use of prescription drugs for legitimate mental conditions that warrant their use (CDC, 2013).
The typical history in these patients is that they increase the dosage of drugs without consulting their physicians. Sometimes, a drug that is prescribed for a specific illness such as panic or anxiety disorder also has other uses such as sleep induction. Patients increase the dose to seek these benefits.
Results of Abusing Prescription Drugs by People with Pre-Existing Mental