Policies to Mitigate Nonmedical Use of Prescription Medications: How Should Emerging Evidence of Gabapentin Misuse Be Addressed?

Policies to Mitigate Nonmedical Use of Prescription Medications: How Should Emerging Evidence of Gabapentin Misuse Be Addressed? Expert Opin Drug Saf. 2017 Oct 06;: Authors: Peckham AM, Fairman KA, Sclar DA Abstract INTRODUCTION: Over the past decade, increased prescription supply has facilitated an epidemic of nonmedical use of controlled substances, including predominantly opioids, as well as benzodiazepines, z-hypnotics, and stimulants. Areas covered: More recently, misuse of noncontrolled prescriptions, such as gabapentin, has been detected. Gabapentin misuse has been associated with drug-related harm and increased healthcare service utilization in a few studies, including a recent large-sample analysis of commercially insured enrollees in the United States (U.S.) Responding to this emerging base of evidence, a small number of U.S. states have acted to prevent or detect gabapentin misuse by requiring the inclusion of gabapentin utilization in reporting to local Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PDMPs) and/or imposing other restrictions on gabapentin prescribing (e.g., classification as a controlled substance, quantity limits). These efforts may result in unintentional harm by (1) encouraging "doctor shopping" across state lines to seek lenient regulatory policies and (2) placing the burden for mitigating misuse on individual practitioners. Expert Opinion: We call for a unified national approach, comprising federal regulation...
Source: Expert Opinion on Drug Safety - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Expert Opin Drug Saf Source Type: research