Table 1 Baseline characteristics stratified by pain medication denial among people who use drugs in Vancouver, Canada
From: Denial of prescription pain medication among people who use drugs in Vancouver, Canada
Characteristic | Total, n = 1168 (100%) | Denied medication, n = 294 (25.2%) | Not denied medication, n = 874 (74.8%) | p – value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Age (median, IQR) | 47.0 (36.6–53.7) | 43.7 (32.4–51.7) | 47.8 (38.3–54.5) |  < 0.001 |
Sex | ||||
Male | 736 (63.0) | 194 (66.0) | 542 (62.0) | 0.25 |
Female | 432 (37.0) | 100 (34.0) | 332 (38.0) | Â |
Ethnicity/Ancestry | ||||
Indigenous | 450 (38.5) | 104 (35.4) | 346 (39.6) | 0.42 |
POC/other | 49 (4.2) | 12 (4.1) | 37 (4.2) | Â |
White | 658 (56.3) | 175 (59.5) | 483 (55.3) | Â |
Education completed | ||||
 ≥ High school | 610 (52.2) | 160 (54.4) | 450 (51.5) | 0.312 |
 < High school | 537 (46.0) | 126 (42.9) | 411 (47.0) |  |
Living with HIV | ||||
Yes | 459 (39.3) | 96 (32.65) | 363 (41.5) | 0.009 |
No | 709 (60.7) | 198 (67.35) | 511 (58.5) | Â |
HCV status | ||||
Seropositive | 901 (77.1) | 226 (76.9) | 675 (77.2) | 1 |
Seronegative | 265 (22.7) | 67 (22.8) | 198 (22.7) | Â |
Physical disability | ||||
Yes | 792 (67.8) | 201 (68.4) | 591 (67.6) | 0.811 |
No | 375 (32.1) | 92 (31.3) | 283 (32.4) | Â |
Housing status* | ||||
Unstable | 731 (62.6) | 206 (70.1) | 525 (60.1) | 0.002 |
Stable | 426 (36.5) | 85 (28.9) | 341 (39.0) | Â |
Downtown Eastside residency* | ||||
Yes | 646 (55.3) | 170 (57.8) | 476 (54.5) | 0.35 |
No | 522 (44.7) | 124 (42.2) | 398 (45.5) | Â |
Incarceration* | ||||
Yes | 88 (7.5) | 43 (14.6) | 45 (5.2) |  < 0.001 |
No | 1078 (92.3) | 250 (85.0) | 828 (94.7) | Â |
Opioid agonist therapy* | ||||
Yes | 653 (55.9) | 181 (61.6) | 472 (54.0) | 0.028 |
No | 515 (44.1) | 113 (38.4) | 402 (46.0) | Â |
Non-fatal overdose* | ||||
Yes | 128 (11.0) | 50 (17.0) | 78 (8.9) |  < 0.001 |
No | 1040 (89.0) | 244 (83.0) | 796 (91.1) | Â |
Self-manage pain* | ||||
Yes | 830 (71.1) | 264 (89.8) | 566 (64.8) |  < 0.001 |
No | 337 (28.9) | 30 (10.2) | 307 (35.1) | Â |
Heavy alcohol use* | ||||
Yes | 166 (14.2) | 44 (15.0) | 122 (14.0) | 0.746 |
No | 1001 (85.7) | 250 (85.0) | 751 (85.9) | Â |
Daily cannabis use* | ||||
Yes | 320 (27.4) | 81 (27.6) | 239 (27.4) | 0.998 |
No | 845 (72.4) | 212 (72.1) | 633 (72.4) | Â |
Daily stimulant use*,†| ||||
Yes | 298 (25.5) | 95 (32.3) | 203 (23.2) | 0.002 |
No | 866 (74.1) | 197 (67.0) | 669 (76.5) | Â |
Daily heroin/unregulated opioid use* | ||||
Yes | 204 (17.5) | 79 (26.9) | 125 (14.3) |  < 0.001 |
No | 960 (82.2) | 213 (72.5) | 747 (85.5) | Â |
Any injection drug use* | ||||
Yes | 707 (60.5) | 210 (71.4) | 497 (56.9) |  < 0.001 |
No | 460 (39.4) | 83 (28.2) | 377 (43.1) | Â |
Daily non-medical prescription opioid use* | ||||
Yes | 64 (5.5) | 27 (9.2) | 37 (4.2) | 0.002 |
No | 1102 (94.4) | 266 (90.5) | 836 (95.7) | Â |