How often do emergency departments give or prescribe opioids to people who come in with pain? CDC’s National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey tracked it from 2005 to 2016, counting visits where at least one opioid was given in the ED or prescribed at discharge.
Emergency department visits for pain with an opioid given or prescribed, by age, 2005–2016. Image from CDC’s report.
What changed
| Age group | Trend |
|---|---|
| Under 18 | stable from 2005 to 2011, then fell from 14.3% to 8.5% by 2016 |
| 18–44 and 45–64 | rose from 2005 to 2010, then fell through 2016 |
| 65 and older | no significant change — 38.1% of visits in 2016 |
Who received opioids most
Children were less likely than adults to receive an opioid for pain in the ED. In 2016, adults aged 45–64 had the highest share: 43.8% of their pain visits included an opioid.
About the data
The survey samples visits to emergency departments at general and short-stay hospitals in the 50 states and DC, excluding federal, military and Veterans Administration hospitals. Visits were counted as pain-related from up to three recorded reasons for the visit. Visits where the only opioid was buprenorphine (with or without naloxone) were not counted.
Sources
Based on "QuickStats: Percentage of Emergency Department (ED) Visits for Pain at Which Opioids Were Given or Prescribed, by Age Group — National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, United States, 2005–2016," MMWR Vol. 67, No. 50, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC; a work of the United States government in the public domain.
许可协议： CC0 1.0（公有领域） · 改编自 www.cdc.gov
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