Trends in Prescription Chronic Pain Medication Use before and during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Québec, Canada: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis

Gwenaëlle De Clifford-Faugère, Hermine Lore Nguena Nguefack, Manon Choinière, M. Gabrielle Pagé, Lucie Blais, Line Guénette, Marc Dorais and Anaïs Lacasse ()
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Gwenaëlle De Clifford-Faugère: Department of Health Sciences, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Rouyn-Noranda, QC J9X 5E4, Canada
Hermine Lore Nguena Nguefack: Department of Health Sciences, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Rouyn-Noranda, QC J9X 5E4, Canada
Manon Choinière: Research Center of the Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
M. Gabrielle Pagé: Research Center of the Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H2X 0A9, Canada
Lucie Blais: Faculty of Pharmacy, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada
Line Guénette: Faculty of Pharmacy, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Marc Dorais: StatSciences Inc., Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, QC J7V 0S2, Canada
Anaïs Lacasse: Department of Health Sciences, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Rouyn-Noranda, QC J9X 5E4, Canada

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 15, 1-11

Abstract: Background: In Canada, a state of health emergency was declared in May 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to assess trends in the use of prescription medication for pain management by people living with chronic pain before and during the first wave of the pandemic. Methods: Participants (n = 177) were adults reporting chronic pain who had completed a web-based questionnaire in 2019 and for whom complete longitudinal private and public insurance prescription claims were available. The monthly prevalence of medication use for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), opioids, and prescribed cannabinoids was assessed. An interrupted time series analysis was then performed to evaluate if the COVID-19 pandemic had had an impact on trends in pain medication use. Results: The beginning of the first wave of the pandemic was associated with the onset of a downward trend in opioid use ( p < 0.05); no such association was found regarding NSAIDs. However, point prevalence of opioid use at the beginning (Nov. 2019) and at the end (Mai 2020) of the study period remained somewhat stable (17.0% vs. 16.4%). Regarding prescribed cannabinoids, a gradual increase in use was observed over the entire study period independently from the impact of the first wave of the pandemic (15.3% vs. 22.6%, p < 0.05). Conclusion: While the occurrence of the first wave did have an impact on opioid use among people living with chronic pain, access to and use of opioids appear to have returned to normal before the end of the first wave of COVID-19.

Keywords: pain management; opioids; analgesics; nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; cannabinoids; drug claims (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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