The Vicodin abuse problem: A mathematical approach
Abstract
The prescription drug epidemic in the United States has gained attention recently. Vicodin, along with its generic version, is the country’s mostly widely prescribed pain reliever, and it contains a narcotic component that can lead to physical and chemical dependency. Most Vicodin abusers were first introduced via prescription, unlike other drugs which are often experienced for the first time due to experimentation. Most abusers report obtaining their supply from a prescription, either their own or someone else’s. Although the problem with prescription drug abuse is well known, there is no standard method of addressing the problem. To better understand how to do this, we develop and analyze a mathematical model of Vicodin use and abuse, considering only those patients who were initially prescribed the drug. Through global sensitivity analysis, we show that focusing efforts on abuse prevention rather than treatment has greater success at reducing the population of Vicodin abusers. Our results demonstrate that relying solely on rehabilitation and other treatment programs is not enough to combat the prescription drug problem in the United States. We anticipate that implementing preventative measures in both prescribers and patients will reduce the number of Vicodin abusers.
- Authors:
-
[1];
- Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Arizona State Univ., Tempe, AZ (United States)
- North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, NC (United States)
- Southern Illinois Univ., Edwardsville, IL (United States)
- Georgia Dept. of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities, Atlanta, GA (United States)
- Arizona State Univ., Glendale, AZ (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute; National Science Foundation (NSF); National Security Agency (NSA)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1565854
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1716786
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-18-26963; LA-UR-17-29830
Journal ID: ISSN 0022-5193
- Grant/Contract Number:
- 89233218CNA000001
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Theoretical Biology
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 483; Journal Issue: C; Journal ID: ISSN 0022-5193
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES; Vicodin abuse; Prescription drug abuse; Compartmental model; Sensitivity analysis; Biological Science; Mathematics; sensitivity analysis; adjoint method; prescription drug
Citation Formats
Caldwell, Wendy K., Freedman, Benjamin, Settles, Luke, Thomas, Michael M., Camacho, Erika T., and Wirkus, Stephen. The Vicodin abuse problem: A mathematical approach. United States: N. p., 2019.
Web. doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2019.110003.
Caldwell, Wendy K., Freedman, Benjamin, Settles, Luke, Thomas, Michael M., Camacho, Erika T., & Wirkus, Stephen. The Vicodin abuse problem: A mathematical approach. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtbi.2019.110003
Caldwell, Wendy K., Freedman, Benjamin, Settles, Luke, Thomas, Michael M., Camacho, Erika T., and Wirkus, Stephen. Mon .
"The Vicodin abuse problem: A mathematical approach". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtbi.2019.110003. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1565854.
@article{osti_1565854,
title = {The Vicodin abuse problem: A mathematical approach},
author = {Caldwell, Wendy K. and Freedman, Benjamin and Settles, Luke and Thomas, Michael M. and Camacho, Erika T. and Wirkus, Stephen},
abstractNote = {The prescription drug epidemic in the United States has gained attention recently. Vicodin, along with its generic version, is the country’s mostly widely prescribed pain reliever, and it contains a narcotic component that can lead to physical and chemical dependency. Most Vicodin abusers were first introduced via prescription, unlike other drugs which are often experienced for the first time due to experimentation. Most abusers report obtaining their supply from a prescription, either their own or someone else’s. Although the problem with prescription drug abuse is well known, there is no standard method of addressing the problem. To better understand how to do this, we develop and analyze a mathematical model of Vicodin use and abuse, considering only those patients who were initially prescribed the drug. Through global sensitivity analysis, we show that focusing efforts on abuse prevention rather than treatment has greater success at reducing the population of Vicodin abusers. Our results demonstrate that relying solely on rehabilitation and other treatment programs is not enough to combat the prescription drug problem in the United States. We anticipate that implementing preventative measures in both prescribers and patients will reduce the number of Vicodin abusers.},
doi = {10.1016/j.jtbi.2019.110003},
journal = {Journal of Theoretical Biology},
number = C,
volume = 483,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Sep 09 00:00:00 EDT 2019},
month = {Mon Sep 09 00:00:00 EDT 2019}
}
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