Early High-Risk Opioid Prescribing and Persistent Opioid Use in Australian Workers with Workers' Compensation Claims for Back and Neck Musculoskeletal Disorders or Injuries: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

backgroundOpioid prescribing to injured workers has increased despite evidence demonstrating that risks often outweigh the benefits. High-risk prescribing and persistent opioid use are often associated with harm. However, there are limited data on what predicts early high-risk and persistent opioid prescribing in Australian workers with back and neck-related injuries or disorders.

objectiveThe purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and identify determinants of early high-risk and persistent opioid prescribing in Australian workers with back and neck conditions.

methodsA retrospective cohort study was carried out with injured workers with workers' compensation claims for back and neck conditions who filled at least one opioid prescription within the first 90 days after injury from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2019. High-risk opioid prescribing practices in the first 90 days were measured using one of four indicators of risk (high-total opioid volume on first dispensing occasion-exceeding 350 mg oral morphine equivalent in the first week, average high-dose over 90 days-higher than 50 mg oral morphine equivalent, early supply with long-acting opioids, and concurrent psychotropic prescriptions). Persistent opioid use was determined using group-based trajectory modeling over the subsequent 1-year. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify predictors of high-risk opioid prescribing in the first 90 days and persistent opioid use in the subsequent year.

resultsA total of 6278 injured workers prescribed opioids were included. At least one indicator of high-risk opioid prescribing was identified in 67.1% of the sample in the first 3 months. Persistent opioid use was identified in 22.8% of the sample over the subsequent year. Early high-risk opioid prescribing was associated with double the odds of persistent use (aOR 2.19, 95% CI 1.89-2.53). Injured workers residing in rural areas (inner regional and outer regional/remote Australia) had higher odds of high-risk prescribing (aOR 1.26, 95% CI 1.11-1.44) and (aOR 1.43, 95% CI 1.10-1.87), respectively, compared with those in major cities. Similarly, workers residing in areas with most disadvantaged and advantaged socioeconomic quintile had higher (aOR 1.18, 95% CI 1.01-1.39) and lower (aOR 0.68, 95% CI 0.56-0.82) odds of persistent opioid use, respectively, compared with those in the middle socioeconomic quintiles.

conclusionsA total of two-thirds of injured workers receiving opioids in the first 90 days show evidence of high-risk prescribing, with nearly one-quarter exhibiting persistent opioid use over the subsequent year. Early high-risk opioid prescribing doubles the odds of opioid persistence. There is a need for further research and careful scrutiny of opioid prescribing in this population.