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A new study from Northwestern Medicine analyzed 20 years of data on opioid overdose deaths among adults 55 and older, and came to contrasting conclusions
.
Opioid-related overdose deaths among U.
"Many of us think of substance abuse as a problem for young people
.
However, older adults are experiencing an explosion of fatal opioid overdoses," said Marian Mason, associate professor of emergency medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
The findings will be published Jan.
11 in JAMA Network Open
.
“Many are baby boomers who use recreational drugs at a young age, and unlike previous generations, they are Lori Post, professor of geriatric medicine, Feinberg professor of emergency medicine and medical social sciences
.
Going against the stereotype of 'older people'
Over a 20-year period, 79,893 Americans aged 55 to 80 died from opioid overdoses, about half of whom were between the ages of 55 and 64, Mason said
.
The study found that the total annual death rate for people aged 55 and older ranged from 0.
Ageism is one of the reasons for the rise in fatal opioid overdoses among older adults, Post said, explaining that physicians often don't check for drugs of abuse when they meet with older adults because "it doesn't fit the stereotype of older adults
.
"
"They're invisible," Post said
.
"We're talking about granny and grandpa on drugs, even drug overdoses
African American men have seen the largest increase in opioid overdose deaths among older adults since 2013, the study found
.
As of 2019, the opioid overdose death rate for non-Hispanic black or African American men aged 55 and older was 40.
"It's really a big question of what's happening in this population and what's not happening in other populations," Mason said
.
"It hints at the beginning of a third wave of the opioid epidemic, when fentanyl begins to appear in the normal drug supply.
Mason noted that black men are more likely than other older age groups to experience trauma, lack health insurance and health care, distrust medical providers, and not adequately treat pain
.
The study also suggests other factors contributing to the exponential growth in older adults
.
They may include social isolation and depression; exposure to medically prescribed opioids for chronic conditions that increase with age, such as arthritis and cancer; and cognitive decline, which may interfere with taking opioids
.
In addition, the body's ability to metabolize opioids declines with age, meaning people are more likely to overdose
.
"We need to inform services that serve seniors, such as meal delivery services or domestic services, about these potential problems and how to recognize signs of substance abuse, such as confusion, falls, asking for medication too often or Irregular menstruation
.
"
Mason noted that the disproportionately high rate of drug use among black men requires addressing the social health determinants of drug abuse in the first place
.
Other Northwestern authors on the paper include Dr.
Howard King and Rebecca Soliman
.
Funding for the research was provided by the Beeler Center-Smith Endowment in Gerontology Research Fund and the School of Policy Research Summer Undergraduate Research Assistant Program
.
Journal Reference :
Maryann Mason, Rebekah Soliman, Howard S.
Kim, Lori Ann Post.
Disparities by Sex and Race and Ethnicity in Death Rates Due to Opioid Overdose Among Adults 55 Years or Older, 1999 to 2019 .
JAMA Network Open , 2022; 5 (1) : e2142982 DOI: 10.
1001/jamanetworkopen.
2021.
42982
