Author: Terri Voepel-Lewis, PhD, RN


Prescription opioid misuse is defined as using a prescribed drug without a physician’s order (i.e., taking someone else’s prescription) or taking a prescribed drug in a higher dose, more frequently, or as otherwise not intended. Despite decreases in prescription opioid misuse over the past decade, 5% to 15% of U.S. teens have recently admitted to misusing a prescribed opioid. Which of the following factors have been associated with increased risk for prescription opioid misuse?