TXST researchers to study prescription drug misuse in youth

The National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Drug Abuse has awarded Texas State University a grant to study prescription drug abuse among youths.

The four-year, $1.25 million grant will support the project “Longitudinal Changes in Prescription Drug Misuse and Polysubstance Use in Adolescents and Young Adults.” Ty Schepis, Ph.D., will serve as the principal investigator.

Prescription drug misuse is the term for using controlled medication in ways not intended by the prescriber or use without a prescription. Although adolescents and young adults have the highest prevalence rates of PDM and increasing rates of overdose, little research has examined changes in this group over time. There is also a lack of information on the medication classes involved in PDM and multiple medications that may be misused simultaneously.

This research program will examine ongoing changes and differences in PDM in youth cohorts aged 12-30 years. The study aims to identify at-risk youth in need of targeted screening, prevention and treatment, allowing researchers and clinicians to prevent PDM among the most vulnerable age groups and intervene in those cases where the subjects are most in need of treatment.

Rapid publication and distribution of the project’s findings have the potential to influence policy and inform the development of improved screening, prevention and intervention for PDM and its consequences in high-risk youths.

For more information on the study, visit https://reporter.nih. gov/search/7XlW_p6x-7EWd8LdXjGFffg/project- details/10364466