Risk factors for opioid use disorder

Opioids are most addictive when you take them in a way other than how they were prescribed — for example, crushing a pill so that it can be snorted or injected. This life-threatening drug misuse is even more dangerous if the pill is effective for a longer period of time. Rapidly delivering all the medicine to your body can cause an accidental overdose. Taking more than your prescribed dose of opioid medicine, or taking a dose more often than prescribed, also increases your risk of opioid use disorder.

How long you use prescribed opioids also plays a role. Researchers have found that taking opioid medicines for more than a few days raises your risk of long-term use. This makes it more likely that opioids will become addictive. After only five days of taking an opioid medicine, the chances increase that you'll still be taking opioids a year after starting a short course of the medicine.

Genetic, psychological and environmental factors also play a role in addiction, which can happen quickly or after many years of opioid use.

Risk of opioid addiction is greater for people who:

• Are younger, specifically in their teens or early 20s.
• Have a personal or family history of substance misuse.
• Are living with stress, including being unemployed or living below the poverty line.
• Have a history of problems with work, family and friends.
• Have a history of taking part in crimes or having legal issues, including DUIs.
• Have serious depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder.
• Have a history of physical or sexual abuse.
• Take part in risky or thrill-seeking behavior.
• Perform poorly in school and do not value education.
• Use tobacco heavily.

In addition, women have a unique set of risk factors for opioid use disorder. Women are more likely than men to have long-term pain. Compared with men, women also are more likely to be prescribed opioid medicines, to be given higher doses and to use opioids for longer periods of time. Women also may be more likely than men to become dependent on prescription pain relievers.