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335314
Non-medical prescription drug use in a representative sample of high school students: A need for prevention in rural settings


Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Tara Barnett, MPH (c), Office of Rural Health, University of Nevada School of Medicine, Reno, NV
Kristen Clements-Nolle, PhD, MPH, School of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV
Taylor Lensch, MPH (c), School of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV
David Frankenberger, MPH, School of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, CA
Sandra Larson, MPH, Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health
Wei Yang, PhD, MD, School of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada Reno, Reno, NV
BACKGROUND: Non-medical prescription drug use (NMPDU) among adolescents is common in the United States, but studies evaluating rural vs. urban differences in NMPDU are few and conflicting.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether there is a difference in the prevalence of NMPDU among rural and urban adolescents in a state with a high proportion (82%) of rural and frontier counties.

METHODS: Data from 3,928 high school students who took the 2013 Nevada Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) was used. Weighted logistic regression was used to determine the relationship between geographic setting and prescription drug use while controlling for demographics and other potentially confounding variables. Analysis was done using SAS 9.3.

RESULTS: In the adjusted model, the odds of NMPDU remained higher among rural students (AOR=1.29; 95% CI= 1.01, 1.65). In addition, compared to freshman, sophomores (AOR=1.65; 95% CI= 1.11, 2.44), juniors (AOR=2.14; 95% CI= 1.42, 3.22), and seniors (AOR= 2.63; 95% CI= 1.76, 3.94) had higher odds of NMPDU. Use was higher for females (AOR=1.38; 95% CI=1.06, 1.79), students who initiated alcohol use at an early age (before 13 years) (AOR=2.88; 95% CI= 2.27, 3.64), and was lower for students with a high level of parental monitoring (AOR=0.52; 95% CI= 0.40, 0.69).

CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest living in a rural area may be an important, but often overlooked, risk factor for NMPDU. NMPDU prevention programs and policies should be tailored to meet the needs of rural adolescents.

Learning Areas:

Assessment of individual and community needs for health education

Learning Objectives:
Discuss the prevalence and correlates of non-medical prescription drug use among adolescents. Identify appropriate non-medical prescription drug use prevention approaches for rural high school students.

Keyword(s): Adolescents, Rural Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: My research focuses primarily on adolescent health disparities existing in rural communities, using data from one of the most rural parts of the United States. These research findings can inform and influence adolescent health, rural health, and telehealth considerably.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 5004.0: Prescription and illicit drug use among transitional aged youth