Rising drug trends in Connecticut prompt community members to spread message

By Staff Writer

Members of a Connecticut community recently got together to discuss the rising trend in prescription drug use among teenagers.

According to the Ridgefield Patch, an anti-drug coalition official said that prescription drug abuse is the leading cause of death in Connecticut for people between the ages of 15 and 34. The number of pill-related deaths in that age group is now higher than car accident-related fatalities.

These alarming trends prompted a group of doctors, police officers and social workers from a Connecticut city to field questions during a panel discussion. A substance abuse prevention program director said that many teens have the idea that prescription drugs are safer than illegal drugs because doctors write prescriptions for these pills and many adults regularly take them.

One doctor said she saw a 112 percent increase in emergency room (ER) visits due to the misuse of prescription opioids from 2004 to 2008. She said that the number of ER visits due to pill abuse is approximately the same as those caused by illegal drug abuse.

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, prescription abuse by teens exceeds marijuana use, and there are as many new abusers - aged 12 and older - of pain relievers as there are for marijuana.