Loaded: Gun involvement among opioid users.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Despite ample research examining how alcohol use relates to gun involvement, little is known about the relationship between opioids and gun involvement. In the current study, we examined correlates of gun possession, accessibility, and related behaviors in an opioid dependent sample.

Methods

Between October 2016 and April 2017, we surveyed persons entering a brief, inpatient opioid detoxification (n = 386) and 51 contemporaneous persons seeking alcohol detoxification at the same facility in Massachusetts and recorded their lifetime experiences with gun involvement.

Results

Participants averaged 33 years of age, 74% were male, 83% were White, and 64% had a history of incarceration. Opioid users had significantly higher rates of gun involvement than persons

SUBMITTER: Stein MD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5959793 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature