Firearm-Related Injuries and the US Opioid and Other Substance Use Epidemic: A Nationwide Evaluation of Emergency Department Encounters

There has been a sharp climb in the Unites States’ death rate among opioid and other substance abuse patients, as well as an increased prevalence in gun violence. We aimed to investigate the association between substance abuse and gun violence in a national sample of patients presenting to US emerge...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of surgical research 2024-06, Vol.298, p.128-136
Main Authors: Tennakoon, Lakshika, Ko, Ara, Knight, Ariel W., Nassar, Aussama K., Wu, Ruoxue, Spain, David A., Knowlton, Lisa M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Emergency departments
Epidemiology
Firearm-related injuries
Mortality
Opioids
Substance use disorder
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Summary:There has been a sharp climb in the Unites States’ death rate among opioid and other substance abuse patients, as well as an increased prevalence in gun violence. We aimed to investigate the association between substance abuse and gun violence in a national sample of patients presenting to US emergency departments (EDs). We queried the 2018-2019 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample for patients ≥18 years with substance abuse disorders (opioid and other) using International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification codes. Within this sample, we analyzed characteristics and outcomes of patients with firearm-related injuries. The primary outcome was mortality; secondary outcomes were ED charges and length of stay. Among the 25.2 million substance use disorder (SUD) patients in our analysis, 35,306 (0.14%) had a firearm-related diagnosis. Compared to other SUD patients, firearm-SUD patients were younger (33.3 versus 44.7 years, P 
ISSN:0022-4804
1095-8673
1095-8673
DOI:10.1016/j.jss.2024.02.007