The surprising prescription drug killing thousands of Australians
When we think of deadly drugs, methamphetamine and heroin come to mind. However, startling new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics has found a much more common (and legal) drug may be responsible for more deaths each year than both.
Researchers from the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre have found that, of the 668 overdose deaths in 2013, a staggering 68 per cent were related to pharmaceutical opioids.
“We expect further increases once the deaths data for 2014 and 2015 are finalised,” lead author Amanda Roxburgh told the Sydney Morning Herald. “We're seeing a real shift from illicit to pharmaceutical opioids implicated in these deaths, affecting a broader range of people who want to manage their pain.”
Opioids are powerful painkillers that, while once used primarily by cancer patients, are now much more mainstream. Extremely addictive, those hooked on the drugs could start consuming up to 90 tablets a day.
“There's good research showing there's been a four-fold increase in the prescribing of these drugs between 1990 and 2014, particularly for Oxycontin, Tramadol and Fentanyl,” explained Roxburgh. “I think doctors need to prescribe for a shorter time and have the patient come in again for a review before they prescribe more.”
As a result of the research, Roxburgh is urging the government to introduce tougher legislation, a national clinical guideline or a real-time monitoring program. “We also need to invest in pain programs that don't involve long-term medication, such as ones that are behaviourally and psychologically based.”