Objective(s): This study aimed to characterize the co-utilization of non-benzodiazepine sedative 'Z'-drugs with opioids at ambulatory care visits in the United States.
Design: A cross-sectional analysis of the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) from 2006 to 2016 was completed.
Setting and participants: Ambulatory care visits in the United States involving adult patients with an opioid prescription were included in the analysis.
Outcome measures: The primary outcome was initiation or continuation of a Z-drug (zolpidem, eszopiclone, or zaleplon) in a patient visit in conjunction with an opioid medication.
Results: The authors analyzed 564,090,296 visits (weighted from a sample of 28,773) with a reported opioid prescription. Co-utilization of opioids with Z-drugs fluctuated during the study period beginning at 4.0% in 2006 (95% CI 2.2%-5.7%), 6.3% in 2012 (3.7%-8.9%), and 4.7% in 2016 (2.8%-6.5%). Among all opioid visits in the study period, co-utilization with a Z-drug was not significantly different among female patients compared with male patients (5.26% vs. 4.63%, P = 0.26). Among visits with concomitant opioid and Z-drugs, 7.0% reported new initiation of both medications in the same visit.
Conclusion: At ambulatory care visits between 2006 and 2016, co-utilization of opioids and Z-drugs fluctuated with some differences by sex. Major regulatory advisories and policy changes during this period may have contributed to these varying rates of utilization. Additional work is needed to identify predictors of co-utilization and downstream consequences more widely.
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