July 20, 2024 - Opioids act on the brain in powerful and potentially dangerous ways. Find out why no one is safe from opioid use disorder and learn what raises the risk.

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January 17, 2024 - Patients at particular risk for OUD include those deficient in neurotransmitters such as dopamine or with first-degree relatives who have a substance abuse disorder.[4] Patients who have been exposed to an environment that includes opioid use may also be more likely to develop OUD.

An estimated 3-12% of people treated with opioids for chronic pain will develop an addiction or abuse with negative consequences.(12) Approximately 8.6 million Americans reported misusing prescription opioids in 2023.(13) People who develop ...

The risk of OUD is higher if you misuse the medicines. Misuse can include taking more than your prescribed dose or taking it more often, using it to get high, or taking someone else's opioids.

April 7, 2025 - Anyone who takes prescription opioids can become addicted to them. Prescription drug monitoring programs and education around the risks of prescription opioids are some ways to help prevent OUD.

April 28, 2025 - Taking too a high a dose of opioids, or taking opioids over longer periods of time, can lead to harmful or even deadly effects. See, “What are the health risks of using opioids?” · Opioids are addictive.

June 10, 2025 - Opioids pose a risk to all patients. Anyone taking prescription opioids is at risk for unintentional overdose or death and can become addicted regardless of race, sex, income level, or social class.

November 21, 2023 - A person may take opioids more frequently or at higher doses to restore the euphoria or, as the condition progresses, to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Taking an opioid regularly increases the risk of becoming addicted.

May 3, 2019 - This systematic review of studies examining factors associated with opioid addiction investigates whether clinically useful associations exist between opioid addiction and patient characteristics, drug characteristics, and use of common screening tools.

Risk factors for opioid misuse or addiction include past or current substance abuse, untreated psychiatric disorders, younger age, and social or family environments that encourage misuse.

Factors that have been shown to ... include a history of substance abuse; depression or other psychiatric disorders; childhood abuse or neglect; and certain personality traits, including impulsivity and sensation-seeking...

The risks of dependence and addiction are higher if you abuse the medicines. Abuse can include taking too much medicine, taking someone else's medicine, taking it in a different way than you are supposed to, or taking the medicine to get high. Opioid abuse, addiction, and overdoses are serious public health problems in the United States.

August 29, 2025 - using opioids in combination with alcohol and/or other substances or medicines that suppress respiratory function such as benzodiazepines, barbiturates, anesthetics or some pain medications; and · having concurrent medical conditions such as HIV, liver or lung diseases or mental health conditions. Males, people of older age and people with low socio-economic status are at higher risk of opioid overdose than women, people of young age groups and people with higher socio-economic status.

December 16, 2022 - Prescription opioid use, even when used as prescribed by a doctor can lead to a substance use disorder, which takes the form of addiction in severe cases.

April 18, 2024 - Opioid use disorder is a chronic ... an addiction—characterized by the persistent use of opioids despite harmful consequences caused by their use. Patients typically have both physical dependence and loss of control over their opioid use and may experience serious consequences related to their use. It is a relapsing disorder, which means that if people who have OUD stop using opioids, they are at increased risk of reverting ...

November 25, 2022 - The Opioid Risk Tool (ORT) is a validated screening instrument commonly used in practice to evaluate the risk of future aberrant opioid use among chronic nonmalignant pain patients who receive prescribed opioids for pain relief.[7] In other words, the tool quantifies the risk of developing an opioid use disorder (OUD). The assumption is that there would be predisposing factors, including behavioral factors and factors strictly related to the patient's history and experiences. For instance, opioid-related aberrant behaviors include abuse, misuse, and diversion.[8] The matter is much more complicated as a previous history of addiction to opioids or other substances is not the only predictive factor.

indicates moderate risk for opioid abuse, and a score of 8 or higher indicates a high risk for opioid abuse.

This page, Opioid Overdose Risk Factors, is offered by · Bureau of Substance Addiction Services · show more · Department of Public Health · Stay Safe. Know the risks. Carry Naloxone. There are several factors that can increase a person’s risk of overdosing.

While anyone who uses a prescription opioid can become addicted, several risk factors are associated with higher rates of misuse, abuse and addiction.