There are growing efforts by pharmaceutical companies to develop opioid formulations less prone to misuse (particularly injection), dependence and diversion to illicit markets. In Australia, the semi-synthetic opioid agonist oxycodone is available in eight different products, the most frequently prescribed controlled release formulation being OxyContin. An “abuse-deterrent” (or “tamper-resistant”) formulation of OxyContin tablets was introduced onto the Australian market on 1 April 2014.
This project will examine the level of extra-medical use of oxycodone in Australia and how it compares to extra-medical use of other opioids; whether there is less non-medical use of Reformulated Oxycontin; how pharmaceutical opioid use changes following the introduction of new opioid formulations to the market; and long term outcomes for regular non-medical users of pharmaceutical opioids.
For more about this project: Go to NDARC's website.
