| To identify patient sub-groups with changes in opioid analgesic use in Quebec between 1994 and 2007, a cohort of 2 698 624 adult patients with public drug insurance was assembled. Time series analysis was used to examine both the proportion of patients each day with an opioid prescription and mean daily dose of opioid prescriptions. Analyses were stratified by patient and opioid characteristics. Daily prevalence of opioid use rose from 0.6% to 1.6% in non-cancer patients and 1.5% to 3.7% in cancer patients between 1994 and 2007. Mean daily opioid dose more than tripled in non-cancer patients, due to increasing simultaneous use of both long and short-acting opioids. Patients 80 and older showed the greatest relative increase in opioid use, with fentanyl patch adopted more rapidly in this age group than any other. Further research should evaluate beneficial and adverse effects associated with the increasing use of opioids in non-cancer patients. |
