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Table 2 Risk Factors Associated with Misuse, Abuse, or Diversion of Prescription Drugs

From: Prescription reporting with immediate medication utilization mapping (PRIMUM): development of an alert to improve narcotic prescribing

Demographic characteristics

Medical conditions

Prescription details

High risk behaviors

Race (Caucasian [37, 4952], Non-Hispanic [34, 37], American Indians/Alaskan Natives [34])

High school education or less [49, 53, 54]

Age (Younger to middle aged) [34, 37, 53, 55, 56]

Not married [37, 50, 53, 54]

Financial Problems [37]

Unemployed [37]

Male [34, 35, 53, 55, 57]

Income extremes [34, 53, 55, 57]

Rural residence [34, 37]

LGBT [57]

Public insurance [55]

Low social class [58]

Family history of substance abuse [59]

Preadolescent sexual abuse [59]

Past Suicide Attempt [49]

Lifetime Heroin use [49]

Pain [39, 49, 50, 54, 6062]

Tobacco use [37, 54]

Alcohol use [3739, 57, 59]

Current illicit drug use (including marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, hallucinogens) [37, 39, 57]

Physical disability [37]

Mental health problems [34, 39, 50, 59, 61, 63]

Substance abuse disorder [39, 50, 53, 59]

Hepatitis A, B, C [39]

Past hospitalization [50]

Opioid dependence [50]

Liver disease [50]

Congestive heart failure [50]

Cerebrovascular disease [50]

Chronic pulmonary disease [50]

Diabetes [50]

Hypertension [50]

Cancer [50]

Cardiovascular disease [50]

Obesity [50]

Medical comorbidities [55, 63]

Past care at psychiatric hospital [58]

ADHD [64]

Multiple prescribers [30, 33, 34, 52, 53, 56, 59, 65]

Multiple pharmacies [30, 31, 33, 34, 56]

High community prescribing rates [34]

Treatment with high daily dose opioids and short-acting opioids [39, 50]

Multiple prescriptions [31, 35, 50, 52, 56]

Overlapping prescriptions [31]

High maximum prescribed daily morphine equivalent dose [34, 35, 50, 66, 67]

Preexisting opioid use [62]

Co-prescribing of opioids and benzodiazepines [34]

Multiple prescribers [30, 33, 34, 52, 53, 56, 59, 65]

Multiple pharmacies [30, 33, 34, 56]

Multiple ED visits [50, 55, 59]

Request for refill [59, 60]

Lost or stolen medication [59, 60]

Request for parenteral medication [60]

Reported allergies to non-narcotic medications [52]

Requesting medication by name [52]

Weekend visit [52]

Use of alias [68]

Abnormal urine/blood screen [59]

Resist therapy changes/alternative therapy [59]

Canceled clinic visits [59]