Trends in and Characteristics of Buprenorphine Misuse Among Adults in the US

IMPORTANCE: There is a lack of empirical research regarding misuse of buprenorphine hydrochloride. OBJECTIVE: To identify prescription opioids that are most frequently misused, assess differences in motivations for misuse between buprenorphine and nonbuprenorphine prescription opioids, and examine trends in and factors associated with buprenorphine misuse among individuals with or without opioid use disorder (OUD). DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This survey study used nationally representative data on past-year prescription opioid use, misuse, OUD, and motivations for the most recent misuse from the 2015-2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Participants included 214 505 civilian, noninstitutionalized adult NSDUH respondents. Data were collected from January 2015 to December 2019 and analyzed from February 15 to March 15, 2021. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Buprenorphine use, misuse, and OUD. Misuse was defined as use “in any way that a doctor [physician] did not direct you to use them, including (1) use without a prescription of your own; (2) use in greater amounts, more often, or longer than you were told to take them; or (3) use in any other way a doctor did not direct you to use them.” RESULTS: The 214 505 respondents included in the analysis represented an estimated annual average 246.7 million US adults during 2015-2019 (51.7% [95% CI, 51.4%-52.0%] women; 13.9% [95% CI, 13.7%-14.1%] aged 18-25 y; 40.6% [95% CI, 40.3%-41.0%] aged 26-49 y; 45.5% [95% CI, 45.0-45.9%] aged ≥50 y). In 2019, an estimated 2.4 (95% CI, 2.2-2.7) million US adults used buprenorphine, and an estimated 0.7 (95% CI, 0.5-0.9) million misused buprenorphine compared with an estimated 4.9 (95% CI, 4.4-5.4) million and an estimated 3.0 (95% CI, 2.7-3.2) million who misused hydrocodone and oxycodone, respectively. Prevalence of OUD with buprenorphine misuse trended downward during the period from 2015 to 2019. “Because I am hooked” (27.3% [95% CI, 21.6%-33.8%]) and “to relieve physical pain” (20.5% [95% CI, 14.0%-29.0%]) were the most common motivations for the most recent buprenorphine misuse among adults with OUD. Adults who misused buprenorphine were more likely to report using prescription opioids without having their own prescriptions than those who misused nonbuprenorphine prescription opioids (with OUD: 71.8% [95% CI, 66.4%-76.6%] vs 53.2% [95% CI, 48.5%-57.8%], P < .001; without OUD: 74.7% [95% CI, 68.7%-79.9%] vs 60.0% [58.1%-61.8%], P < .001). Among adults with past-year OUD who used buprenorphine, multivariable multinomial logistic regression results indicated that buprenorphine misuse was associated with being 24 to 34 (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 2.9 [95% CI, 1.4-5.8]) and 35 to 49 (AOR, 2.3 [95% CI, 1.2-4.5]) years of age, residing in nonmetropolitan areas (AOR, 1.8 [95% CI, 1.0-3.0]), and polysubstance use (eg, past-year prescription stimulant use disorder; AOR, 3.9 [95% CI, 1.3-11.2]) but was negatively associated with receiving treatment for drug use only (AOR, 0.4 [95% CI, 0.3-0.7]). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: These findings suggest that among adults with OUD, prevalence of buprenorphine misuse trended downward from 2015 to 2019. In 2019, nearly three-fourths of US adults reporting past-year buprenorphine use did not misuse their prescribed buprenorphine, and most who misused reported using prescription opioids without having their own prescriptions. These findings underscore the need to pursue actions that expand access to buprenorphine-based OUD treatment, to develop strategies to monitor and reduce buprenorphine misuse, and to address associated conditions (eg, suicide risk, co-occurring mental illness, and polysubstance use).