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Demographic Characteristics and Opioid Prescribing
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To the Editor: Dr Pletcher and colleagues1 analyzed trends in US emergency departments in opioid prescribing for pain complaints and found considerable differences by race/ethnicity. However, the authors were unable to account for patients' socioeconomic status (SES) and did not consider the potential role of SES in their results. We believe that the observed differences in opioid prescribing by race/ethnicity could be explained by differences in SES.
Race/ethnicity and SES are highly correlated but not interchangeable.2-3 The notion that SES is likely to influence opioid prescribing is supported by previous research4; it is also supported by the analysis in the study by Pletcher et al, in which a significant interaction was observed between race/ethnicity and insurance status, which may be a rough indicator of SES. Still, precise SES data, including education, occupation, and income, are necessary to thoroughly consider this patient factor. Thus, the observed interaction highlights the potential . . . [Full Text of this Article]
Nancy N. Maserejian, ScD
nmaserejian@neriscience.com
John B. McKinlay, PhD
New England Research Institutes
Watertown, Massachusetts
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