ArticleClinical journal of sport medicine : official journal of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine2020
Reasons for Prescription Opioid Use While Playing in the National Football League as Risk Factors for Current Use and Misuse Among Former Players.
Article in Clinical journal of sport medicine : official journal of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05142267 (Stress and Opioid Misuse Risk), which is not on this map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Stress and Opioid Misuse Risk: The Role of Endogenous Opioid and Endocannabinoid Mechanisms
Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 26 citations in OpenAlex.
- Opioid Use in Athletes: A Systematic Review.Sports healthPooled it
- Opioid Pain Medication Use in Athletes.Cureus · 2026Review
- Litigation Against Physicians Caring for Collegiate Athletes in the United States.Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2026Article
- Sustainable Career Transitions and Mental Health Support in Elite Sport: A Systematic Review of Evidence and Practices.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Medical Malpractice Lawsuits Against Team Physicians in the National Football League Increased Between 1971 and 2020 But Remain Low Overall.Arthroscopy, sports medicine, and rehabilitation · 2025Article
- The association between exercise and prescription opioid misuse: A scoping review.Experimental and clinical psychopharmacology · 2024Article
- Substance availability and use in ex-professional ice hockey enforcers.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Opiate Use Patterns Among Collegiate Athletes.Cureus · 2022Article
- Individual and cumulative health afflictions are associated with greater impairment in physical and mental function in former professional American style football players.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitation · 2022Article
- History of opioid use as a risk factor for current use and mental health consequences among retired National Football League athletes: A 9-year follow-up investigation.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectivePrescription opioid misuse has become a significant public health issue. Previous research has examined predictors of prescription opioid use and misuse among former National Football League (NFL) players. The present study aimed to describe how reasons for prescription opioid use while in the NFL corresponds to use and misuse in retirement.
designFormer NFL players reporting prescription opioid use during their playing careers (N = 336) were included in this secondary data analysis. Participants reported reasons for prescription opioid use, including pain management, use "to function," to improve mood, to reduce stress, and to aid sleep.
resultsAmong retired NFL players with exposure to prescribed pain medication during their playing career, 26.2% reported recent use of prescription opioids (past 30 days) and 73.8% reported no use. Specifically, 14.3% of retired players reported opioid use only as prescribed, whereas 11.9% reported misuse (not prescribed or use other than as prescribed). Using prescription opioids to function while in the NFL was associated with any opioid use in the past 30 days [odds ratios (OR) = 1.30, 95% CI: 1.12-1.50, P < 0.001]. Further, opioid use in the NFL to reduce stress and anxiety was associated with increased odds of past 30-day misuse of prescription opioids (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.01-2.11; P = 0.048).
conclusionsThe present study adds to the literature on elite athletes at high risk for pain and prescription opioid use and misuse. The findings may help to identify and provide early intervention for professional athletes most at risk for misuse of prescription opioids.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.