Arthritis and opioid use

The Cambridge Health Alliance et al identified patients with at least 2 billing codes for systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis or osteoarthritis and compared them for patients with and without OUD: 1,502 of the 37,282 (4%) patients with rheumatic conditions had OUD. Patients with OUD were younger, more likely to have Medicaid insurance, psychiatric and medical comorbidities, and higher acute care use.