According to researchers from Rutgers Health, the number of diagnosed disorders related to the repeated use of sedative, hypnotic, and anti-anxiety medications among adolescents and young adults has seen a dramatic rise since 2001.
Their findings, published in Addiction, assessed the occurrence of these disorders in adolescents and young adults from 2001 to 2019.
Sedative, hypnotic, and anti-anxiety medications are prescribed for various issues, including sleep and anxiety disorders. Harvard Health indicates that regular use of these medications can lead to increased tolerance, which means that patients may need higher doses to experience the same effects.
In some cases, the misuse of these medications can result in significant difficulties and emotional distress. When this occurs, individuals may receive a diagnosis for sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorders, which are estimated to affect 2.2 million Americans, as reported by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
By analyzing national Medicaid data involving nearly 7 million adolescents and young adults in 2001 and 13 million in 2019, Rutgers Health researchers tracked the trends in diagnoses for sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorders. The diagnosed cases increased threefold among adolescents and fivefold among young adults over the span of that period.
“The rise in these diagnoses could be attributed to factors such as the increased availability, usage, and misuse of sedatives, hypnotics, and anxiolytics, along with heightened recognition and diagnosis of these conditions,” stated Greta Bushnell, an assistant professor at the Rutgers Center for Pharmacoepidemiology and Treatment Science (PETS) and the lead author of the study.
Access to sedative, hypnotic, and anti-anxiety medications can occur through several avenues, including medical prescriptions and nonmedical sources like friends or family medicine cabinets. The researchers noted that the incidence of sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorders was especially high among youths with prescriptions. However, most adolescents and young adults diagnosed with these disorders did not possess a prescription for the medications.
“Targeting the nonmedical usage of these drugs is essential to mitigate this disorder,” Bushnell emphasized, also serving as an assistant professor of epidemiology at Rutgers School of Public Health. “Additionally, cautious prescribing practices in this younger demographic are crucial.”
The study also revealed that a significant portion of adolescents and young adults struggling with sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorders also had a coexisting substance use disorder diagnosis; cannabis use disorder was the most prevalent among adolescents, while opioid use disorder was most common in young adults.
“Although sedative, hypnotic, and anxiolytic use disorders occur less frequently than other substance use disorders, they deserve attention from healthcare professionals and researchers due to the challenges associated with treatment and their links to other substance use problems,” Bushnell noted.
Understanding the trends among youths diagnosed with these disorders can help enhance support through care and resources, according to researchers.
The study’s coauthors include Kristen Lloyd and Tobias Gerhard from PETS and the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research; Katherine Keyes, Mark Olfson, and Deborah Hasin from Columbia University; and Magdalena Cerdá from New York University.
