A Brief Survey to Characterize Oxycodone Abuse Patterns in Adolescents Enrolled in Two Substance Abuse Recovery High Schools

• Published in: The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse 2012-03, Vol.38 (2), p.166-170
• Main Authors: Osgood, Eric D., Eaton, Thomas A., Trudeau, Jeremiah J., Katz, Nathaniel P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abusers; Administration, Intranasal; Adolescent; Adolescents; Age of Onset; Analgesics, Opioid - administration & dosage; Drug abuse; Educational attainment; Female; Health Surveys; High School Students; High Schools; Humans; Male; Management; Massachusetts; Narcotics; Nasal sprays; Opiates; Opioid-Related Disorders - diagnosis; Opioid-Related Disorders - therapy; Opioids; oxycodone; Oxycodone - administration & dosage; Polls & surveys; Recovery; Rehabilitation; Respondents; Secondary school students; Secondary schools; Students; Substance Abuse; Substance abuse treatment; Surveys; tamper resistant; Teenagers; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0095-2990; 1097-9891
• DOI: 10.3109/00952990.2011.643994

Background: Although oxycodone is one of the most widely available and abused opioids, little published information exists on the abuse of immediate-release oxycodone. Objective: To obtain information on abuse of oxycodone and the effectiveness of abuse-deterrent strategies, especially for immediate-release oxycodone, we surveyed oxycodone abuse patterns in a population of experienced opioid abusers. Methods: Students or recent graduates of two substance abuse recovery high schools in Massachusetts were surveyed on abuse behaviors with short-acting single-entity oxycodone (e.g., Roxicodone), short-acting combination oxycodone (e.g., Percocet), and extended-release oxycodone. Results: Twenty-four students completed surveys. Mean age was 17.7 years (range 16-19), and mean age at first abuse of oxycodone was 15 (range 13-18). Overall, 56% of students reported oxycodone as their favorite prescription opioid to abuse. The primary preferred method of abuse of all oxycodone formulations was intranasal administration: 83% of single-entity oxycodone abusers preferred intranasal administration compared with 67% of combination oxycodone abusers and 69% of extended-release oxycodone abusers. Approximately half of our respondents preferred to ingest oxycodone orally, 25-38% of respondents swallowed the pill intact, and another 13-17% chewed the pill before swallowing. Maximum dose ever abused at one time ranged from 15 to 400 mg. Most respondents had abused ≥60 mg of oxycodone at a time. Conclusions: In this small study, adolescent oxycodone abusers use high quantities of oxycodone at a time, alter routes of administration for not only extended-release but also immediate-release products, and commonly abuse single-entity oxycodone products. Abuse-deterrent formulations may be one strategy for addressing such behaviors.