Trends in maternal opioid use: Statewide differences by sociodemographic characteristics in Florida from 2000 to 2019.

BACKGROUND: Maternal opioid use (MOU) remains a public health concern. Studies have demonstrated significant increases in MOU, but estimates using ICD-10-CM or stratified by sociodemographic variables are limited.

OBJECTIVES: Using a statewide, population-based dataset of Florida resident deliveries from 2000 to 2019, we examined the trend of MOU by age, race/ethnicity, education level, and insurance.

METHODS: Florida administrative data was used to conduct a retrospective cohort study. MOU was identified using opioid-related hospital discharge diagnoses documented prenatally or at delivery. Maternal sociodemographic variables were obtained from Florida vital statistics. Joinpoint regression was used to identify statistically significant changes in the trends overall and stratified by sociodemographic variables. Results are presented as annual percentage changes (APC) and 95% confidence intervals.

RESULTS: Our sample included over 3.6 million Florida resident mothers; of which, MOU was identified in 1% ( n  = 22,828) of the sample. From 2000 to 2019, MOU increased over ten-fold from 8.7 to 94.7 per 10,000 live birth deliveries. MOU increased significantly from 2000 to 2011 (APC: 32.8; 95% CI: 29.4, 36.2), remained stable from 2011 to 2016, and decreased significantly from 2016 to 2019 (APC: 3.9; 95% CI: -6.6, -1.0). However, from 2016 to 2019, MOU increased among non-Hispanic Black mothers (APC: 9.2; 95% CI: 7.5, 11.0), and those ages 30-34 (APC: 2.9; 95% CI: 1.2, 4.6) and 35-39 (APC: 6.4; 95% CI: 4.3, 8.4).

CONCLUSIONS: Accurate prevalence estimates of MOU by sociodemographic factors are necessary to fully understand prevalence trends, describe the burden among sub-populations, and develop targeted interventions.