Carisoprodol abuse in Texas, 1998–2003

Abstract

Texas poison centers identified carisoprodol as a skeletal muscle relaxant that is subject to abuse, and this investigation explores the abuse reported by Texas poison centers. This study used data from six Texas poison centers to describe the epidemiology of carisoprodol abuse and drug identification (ID) calls from 1998 to 2003. Drug ID and abuse calls were 217% higher in 2003 than in 1998. Although eastern and central Texas contains 43% of the state's population, this region reported 77% of all drug ID calls and 64% of abuse calls. For male patients, 51% of the calls were abuse calls and 37% were other human carisoprodol exposure calls. Patients from 13 to 19 years of age accounted for 17% of abuse calls and 9% of other human exposure calls. Among those human exposure calls with a known medical outcome, a higher percentage of abuse calls involved minor effects while a greater proportion of other human exposure calls involved outcomes that ranged from moderate effects to death. Carisoprodol abuse is increasing in Texas and is substantially more common in the eastern part of the state. Carisoprodol abuse is much more likely, than other types of adverse carisoprodol exposures, to involve males and adolescents; and it less likely to involve adverse medical outcomes.