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. 2006 Dec;118(6):2472-80.
doi: 10.1542/peds.2006-1644.

Adolescents' motivations to abuse prescription medications

Carol J Boyd  1 , Sean Esteban McCabe, James A Cranford, Amy Young
Affiliations

Adolescents' motivations to abuse prescription medications

Carol J Boyd et al. Pediatrics. 2006 Dec.

Abstract

Objectives: Our goals were to (1) determine adolescents' motivations (reasons) for engaging in the nonmedical (illicit) use of 4 classes of prescription medications and (2) examine whether motivations were associated with a higher risk for substance abuse problems.

Respondents: The 2005 sample (N = 1086) was derived from one ethnically diverse school district in southeastern Michigan and included 7th- through 12th-grade students.

Methods: Data were collected by using a self-administered, Web-based survey that included questions about drug use and the motivations to engage in nonmedical use of prescription medication.

Results: Twelve percent of the respondents had engaged in nonmedical use of opioid pain medications in the past year: 3% for sleeping, 2% as a sedative and/or for anxiety, and 2% as stimulants. The reasons for engaging in the nonmedical use of prescription medications varied by drug classification. For opioid analgesics, when the number of motives increased, so too did the likelihood of a positive Drug Abuse Screening Test score. For every additional motive endorsed, the Drug Abuse Screening Test increased by a factor of 1.8. Two groups of students were compared (at-risk versus self-treatment); those who endorsed multiple motivations for nonmedical use of opioids (at-risk group) were significantly more likely to have elevated Drug Abuse Screening Test scores when compared with those who were in the self-treatment group. Those in the at-risk group also were significantly more likely to engage in marijuana and alcohol use.

Conclusion: The findings from this exploratory study warrant additional research because several motivations for the nonmedical use of prescription medications seem associated with a greater likelihood of substance abuse problems.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Reasons for nonmedical use of prescription sleeping medication according to gender (n = 62 lifetime nonmedical sleeping medication users).a P < .05.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Reasons for nonmedical use of prescription sedative/anxiolytic medication according to gender (n = 37 lifetime nonmedical sedative/anxiolytic users).a P < .05.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Reasons for nonmedical use of prescription pain medications according to gender (n = 184 lifetime nonmedical pain medication users).a P < .05.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Reasons for nonmedical use of prescription stimulant medications according to gender (n = 25 lifetime nonmedical stimulant medication users).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration . Results From the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings. Office of Applied Studies; Rockville, MD: 2004. (National Survey on Drug Use and Health series H-22). DHHS publication No. SMA 03-3836.
    1. Daniel KL, Honein MA, Moore CA. Sharing prescription medication among teenage girls: potential danger to unplanned/ undiagnosed pregnancies. Pediatrics. 2003;111(5 pt 2):1167–1170. - PubMed
    1. Boyd CJ, McCabe SE, Teter CJ. Medical and nonmedical use of prescription pain medication by youth in a Detroit-area public school district. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2005;81:37–45. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Boyd CJ, Teter CJ, McCabe SE. Asthma inhaler misuse and substance abuse: a random survey of secondary school students. Addict Behav. 2006;31:278–287. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Teter CJ, McCabe SE, Cranford JA, Boyd CJ, Guthrie SK. Prevalence and motives for illicit use of prescription stimulants in an undergraduate student sample. J Am Coll Health. 2005;53:253–262. - PubMed

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