Many parents with opioid, substance use disorder are living with children; treatment rates are low
WEDNESDAY, May 22, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Rates of treatment are low for parents with opioid use disorder (OUD) or other substance use disorders (SUDs), according to a study published in the May/June issue of the Annals of Family Medicine.
Lisa Clemans-Cope, Ph.D., from the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C., and colleagues estimated the prevalence and treatment of OUD and other SUDs among parents living with children using 2015 to 2017 National Survey of Drug Use and Health cross-sectional data.
The researchers found that an estimated 623,000 parents with OUD are living with children; less than one-third (28.0 percent) have received treatment at a specialty facility or doctor’s office for illicit drug or alcohol use. Among the 4 million parents estimated to have other SUDs, the treatment rates were even lower (5.6 percent). The rate of receipt of treatment for alcohol use was 5.9 percent among parents with OUD and was similarly low for parents with SUDs, despite prevalence of alcohol use disorder of 22.4 and 85.7 percent, respectively. Among parents with OUD and SUD, 42.2 and 26.0 percent, respectively, received any mental health treatment.
“Low receipt of substance use treatment among parents with OUD and other SUDs may be related to low rates of SUD identification and diagnosis by providers, low rates of treatment initiation after diagnosis, or both,” the authors write.
Copyright © 2019 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
