Prescriptions for dangerously addictive opioids have almost DOUBLED in the past five years, shock figures reveal
- The research adds to fears of a prescription pill and opioid crisis in Britain
- Researchers analysed prescription data from more than 7,000 GP surgeries
- There has been an 80% increase in prescriptions for gabapentin since 2013
- Data also revealed a similar surge in the rates of opioid oxycodone and pregablin
Prescriptions for dangerously addictive painkillers have almost doubled in the past five years, shocking figures reveal.
There has been an 80 per cent increase in the number of prescriptions for powerful nerve drug gabapentin in England since 2013, a study has found.
Data from more than 7,000 GP surgeries also reveals a surge in the rate at which other painkillers, including the opioid oxycodone and a drug dubbed the ‘new Valium’, are doled out.
The research adds to fears of a growing prescription pill and opioid crisis in Britain.
Last week Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that action will finally be taken to help patients hooked on prescription drugs in light of an inquiry by Public Health England.
It found that one in four adults has been given potentially addictive pills in the past year, including antidepressants, sleeping pills, tranquilisers and opioid painkillers.
There has been an 80 per cent increase in the number of prescriptions for powerful nerve drug gabapentin in England since 2013
Prescriptions for opioid oxycodone have increased by 46 per cent since last year
Prescriptions for pregabalin, a painkiller that has been described as the new Valium, have increased by 71 per cent over five years
The latest research, by Imperial College London, looked at prescriptions in England for the opioid oxycodone, and non-opioid painkillers gabapentin and pregablin.
It revealed that 6.72 million were issued for gabapentin in 2017/18 – an 80 per cent increase from 2013/14, when just 3.93 million were prescribed.
Prescriptions for pregabalin, a painkiller that has been described as the new Valium, have increased by 71 per cent over five years, with 5.95 million issued last year.
The two non-opioid drugs are prescribed for nerve pain, epilepsy and anxiety but have been linked to a number of drug deaths and have developed a reputation for enhancing the effects of other illegal drugs such as heroin.
ACTION WILL BE TAKEN TO HELP PATIENTS HOOKED ON PRESCRIPTION DRUGS
Action will finally be taken to help patients hooked on prescription drugs, the Health Secretary said last week.
Matt Hancock warned of a crisis of over-medicalisation, vowing to end it ‘once and for all’.
And in a victory for a Daily Mail campaign, an official review called for a national helpline and for guidelines on when doctors should intervene.
In the past year one in four adults has been given potentially addictive pills.
The review from Public Health England said 11.5million patients in England received at least one prescription in the past 12 months for drugs such as anti-depressants, sleeping pills, tranquilisers and opioid painkillers.
Half of those had been taking the pills for at least a year and between a quarter and a third for three years.
The problem often arises when patients are given painkillers after an operation or anti-depressants to cope with a bereavement. Some become hooked and have little support in breaking the habit.
They have become so widely misused that the Home Office reclassified them as class C controlled drugs in April 2019.
The researchers also looked at prescription levels for oxycodone, a class A medication that is one of the most-commonly used opioids.
This has increased by 46 per cent from 1.1million to 1.61million last year.
Researchers found that prescription levels of the addictive drugs were up to three times higher in deprived areas, particularly in the north of England, compared to affluent ones.
The study, published in the British Journal of General Practice Open, said: ‘In conclusion, there have been significant increases in annual prescriptions of gabapentin, pregabalin, and oxycodone per capita in English primary care.
‘The scale of the increases in prescribing of these medications may be driving increased harm in the form of drug-related mortality and morbidity.
‘The experience of the prescription drug misuse epidemic in the US should serve as an early warning to England’s NHS and prompt action to better understand the underlying explanations for the increases in prescribing, and the variation in prescribing rates between GPs and between CCGs.’
The Mail has been campaigning for greater recognition of the prescription drugs addiction crisis since March 2017.
The problem often arises when patients are given painkillers after an operation or anti-depressants to cope with a bereavement.
Some become hooked and have little support in breaking the habit.
In the past year 11.5million patients in England have received at least one prescription for drugs such as antidepressants, sleeping pills, tranquilisers and opioid painkillers.
Half of those have been taking the pills for at least a year and between a quarter and a third for three years.
Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: ‘GPs are well aware of the risks associated with prescribing opioid-based medicines and will only do so if we think it is in the best interests of the patient in front of us.
OPIOIDS IN AMERICA: BY THE NUMBERS
Opioid prescriptions are going down across the US, but overdoses are not.
Last year, the rate of opioid overdose deaths hit a record high, with around 200 Americans dying every day, according to new figures, published by the DEA earlier this month.
US Health Secretary Alex Azar insists the tide has turned this year.
However, doctors warn the boom in prescriptions flooded the market with unused pills, some of which may have made it onto the black market.
An in-depth analysis of 2016 US drug overdose data shows that America’s overdose epidemic is spreading geographically and increasing across demographic groups.
Drug overdoses killed 63,632 Americans in 2016.
Nearly two-thirds of these deaths involved a prescription or illicit opioid. Overdose deaths increased in all categories of drugs examined for men and women, people ages 15 and older, all races and ethnicities, and across all levels of urbanization.
The Orange County Health Agency found that there has been an 88 percent of drug overdose deaths between 2000 and 2015.
Half of those deaths were due to accidental prescription drug overdoses. Seven out of every 10 overdose deaths between 2011 and 2015 involved opioids.
Source: CDC, Orange County Health Agency
‘When prescribed appropriately, these drugs can be effective treatments, particularly in the short term, and a recent major report from Public Health England found that most prescriptions issued in primary care are just for short term use, and that overall we are seeing a decline in opioid prescriptions for chronic pain.
‘GPs do not want to prescribe long-term unless it is essential, and most patients do not want to be taking medication long-term either.
‘But for some patients with chronic pain, pharmacological therapy can be the only thing that provides some relief.
‘What we really need to see are more alternatives to drug therapies for patients with neuropathic or chronic pain – and where effective alternatives are known and exist, better and more equal access to them across the country.
‘GPs are highly trained to prescribe considering the physical, psychological and social factors potentially impacting on their patients’ health, in line with current clinical guidelines.
‘We will also discuss the risks and benefits of taking opioids or gabapentinoids with the patient – including the potential for addiction – before prescribing, and we will monitor patients as best we can to ensure that the treatment is proving beneficial.
‘We would certainly support the researchers’ call for more research into understanding variation in prescribing of these drugs – but also into alternatives to them.’
Dr Farah Jameel, BMA GP committee executive team member, said: ‘We have seen the damage opioids are doing to people’s lives in the US, and while the scale of the problem is on a far lower scale here, doctors in the UK are of course concerned by the increased number of patients being prescribed these drugs.
‘Opioids are an effective treatment for short-term pain, as part of cancer treatment and end of life care, but we know that too often they’re being taken for far longer than is appropriate.
‘The decision to prescribe opioids is never taken lightly. GPs will prescribe them to patients with serious conditions when necessary, but problems can begin when patients need to be taken off them as they may have already become dependent.
‘With other medication often not being able to alleviate their pain and very few alternatives available, GPs are placed in a very difficult situation.’
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