Differences in the Pattern of Non-Recreational Sharing of Prescription Analgesics among Patients in Rural and Urban Areas

Introduction: This study aimed to analyze differences in sharing of prescription analgesics between rural and urban populations. Methods: We surveyed 1000 participants in outpatient family medicine settings in Croatia. We used a 35-item questionnaire to analyze patients’ characteristics, pain intensity, prescription analgesic sharing behavior, and perception of risks regarding sharing prescription medications. Results: Prescription analgesic sharing was significantly more frequent in the rural (64%) than in the urban population 55% (p = 0.01). Participants from rural areas more commonly asked for verbal or written information than those from urban areas when taking others’ prescription analgesics (p < 0.001) or giving such analgesics (p < 0.001). Participants from rural areas more commonly informed their physician about such behavior compared to those from urban areas (p < 0.01), and they were significantly more often asked about such behavior by their physician (p < 0.01). Perceptions about risks associated with sharing prescription medication were similar between rural and urban populations. Conclusions: There are systematic differences in the frequency of prescription analgesics and associated behaviors between patients in family medicine who live in rural and urban areas. Patients from rural areas were more prone to share prescription analgesics. Future studies should examine reasons for differences in sharing prescription analgesics between rural and urban areas.