Polysubstance combinations involving prescription opioids and rationales for combining among people who use internet drug discussion forums

Abstract

Aims: To compare data on the prevalence of illicit drug use collected in an online national survey of non-medical use of prescription medicine and the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW). Methods: The online national survey was undertaken in July 2014 using amarket research company. Data included in this study were demographics and the prevalence of illicit drug use in those aged 16–59 years residing in England or Wales (n=1594). CSEW is an annual household survey in England and Wales; the 2013/14 CSEW included 34,906 respondents aged 16–59 years. Lifetime and last year prevalence of illicit drug use was compared between the whole groups and in young adults (16–24 years). Results: Prevalence of use of illicit drugs in the online national survey and CSEW were similar for the whole groups (lifetime use: online survey 32.6%, CSEW35.6%. Last year use: online survey 8.6%, CSEW 8.8%) and young adults (lifetime use: online survey 31.4%, CSEW 36.3%. Last year use: online survey 15.0%, CSEW 18.9%). For lifetime use, cannabis was the most common drug in each data source (23.7% and 29.9%), amphetamines was the second (9.7% and 11.1%) and any cocaine was the third (8.2% and 9.5%). Conclusions: The prevalence of use of illicit drugs was similar in the online national survey and the CSEW. The comparability of these findings demonstrates the feasibility of using an online survey administered with a market research company to obtain data comparable to the well-established household CSEW with a considerably smaller sample. This methodology could be used to further explore aspects of illicit drug use and non-medical use of prescription medicines. Financial support: The RADARS® System is part of Denver Health and Hospital Authority, a division of the state of Colorado. It is supported by subscriptions from pharmaceutical manufacturers.