Use and dependence on opioid drugs in the Spanish population with chronic pain: Prevalence and differences according to sex.

OBJECTIVES: To analyse the prevalence in the use and dependence on opioid drugs in the Spanish population with chronic pain and evaluate the differences according to sex.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: The demographic variables, opioid treatment characteristics and use of other substances were assessed in 229 users of opioid drugs. A descriptive bivariate analysis of the data was performed.

RESULTS: Forty-six percent of the patients met the criteria of dependence on opioid drugs (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition [DSM-IV-TR]). Alcohol and cannabis consumption was greater in the men. The rates of dependence on the use of opioid drugs were significantly higher in the extended treatments.

CONCLUSIONS: Planning for treatments with opioids and strategies for preventing inappropriate use should not depend on the patient's sex. We need further studies on the medical and psychological variables related to the use of and dependence on opioids.