Heavy use versus less heavy use of sedatives among non-medical sedative users Characteristics and correlates

Non medical use of sedatives is an ongoing problem However very little is known about the characteristics of individuals who use sedatives non-medically or the motives behind such use The present analysis involving a sample of individuals reporting non-medical use of sedatives in the past 12 months (N=188) examined the relationship between socio demographic variables past year use of other licit and illicit drugs type of non-medical use (use in ways other than as prescribed use when not prescribed or both) motives and past 12-month sedative use Past 12-month sedative use was dichotomized as Heavy Use (>90 pills in past 12 months) and Less Heavy Use (<= 90 pills) using a median split Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that Heavy Use of sedatives was significantly associated with positive diagnoses for sedative use disorder and prescription opioid use disorder a higher number of motives for sedative use and reporting sedative use in ways other than as prescribed and both forms of non-medical use namely other than as prescribed and when not prescribed compared to non prescribed use Although in univariate analyses a positive diagnosis for past 12 month cocaine use disorder and individual motives for sedative use such as to get high and for pain relief significantly predicted past 12 month Heavy Use their effects diminished and became non-significant after adjusting for other covariates Findings underscore the need for considering differential risk factors in tailoring preventive interventions for reducing non medical sedative use (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved