Study: Pediatric hospitalizations for prescription opioid poisonings up since 1997

Hospitalizations for prescription opioid poisonings increased 165% among children and adolescents between 1997 and 2012, to 3.7 per 100,000, according to a study published online today by JAMA Pediatrics. The largest increases in hospitalizations occurred among children ages 1-4 (205%) and 15-19 (176%). Adolescents aged 15-19 had the highest hospitalization rates in each of the six years examined. Among 15-19 year olds, opioid poisonings attributed to suicide or self-inflicted injury increased 140% while those attributed to accidental intent increased 303%. “Reducing pediatric opioid exposure and misuse will require a combination of public health interventions, policy initiatives and consumer-product regulations,” the authors said.