By the Numbers: A Different Kind Of Heroin Addict

— Today's users are younger, whiter and more often male

MedpageToday

Heroin deaths outnumbered gun-related deaths in the U.S. for the first time in 2015, just one of many indications that heroin use is up -- dramatically -- since the beginning of the millennium.

But a new study in JAMA Psychiatry shows that the increase in deaths didn't affect everyone equally. By comparing responses from the 2001-02 National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions to results from the 2012-13 version, authors Silvia S. Martins, MD, of Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, and colleagues found that increases in heroin use disorder among some groups were concentrated in just a few groups.

The biggest change came in the racial makeup of users. In the 2001-2002 responses, nonwhites more commonly met criteria for heroin use disorder than did whites. But a decade later, that had completely flipped: the rate among whites doubled from the previous period and was nearly double that of nonwhites, among whom the rate had risen only a little.

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The problem was most pronounced among young people, 18-29 years old. In 2001-02, all age groups reported similar rates. By 2012-13, though, the rates among young users were up nearly five-fold, more than for any other age group.

Use disorder rates were up for all income and education groups, relatively evenly. While men saw a larger bounce in their rates than their female counterparts, the gap between the two genders' reliance remained steady.

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The authors believed their results could help lead to more focused efforts to curb the heroin epidemic.

"Promising examples include expansion of access to medication-assisted treatment, educational programs in schools and community settings, overdose prevention training in concert with comprehensive naloxone hydrochloride distribution programs, and consistent use of prescription drug monitoring programs," they wrote.