Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40600025›Full record

ArticleInnovation in aging2025

Social Withdrawal and Prescription Opioid Misuse Among Older Adults in the United States.

Jack Lam, Michael Vuolo, Brian Kelly

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Innovation in aging, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Jack LamDiscipline of Sociology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7169-4930
Michael VuoloDepartment of Sociology, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Brian KellyDepartment of Sociology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2039-1347

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background and Objectives: The literature indicates an association between social isolation and substance use. Though related, social withdrawal is a construct that has received less attention. Given that prescription drugs are commonly misused by older adults, this paper contributes to the literature by examining the association between social withdrawal and prescription opioid misuse. Research Design and Methods: We use data from 2009 to 2022 U.S. National Survey on Drug Use and Health, focusing on respondents 50+ ( Results: Levels of social withdrawal and prescription opioid misuse remained relatively constant across observation years. A significant association exists between social withdrawal and past-year prescription opioid misuse. We find increasing odds of past-year prescription opioid misuse across social withdrawal severity levels. Severe social withdrawal across measures is associated with 1.59 (95% CI = 1.28, 1.98) to 2.1 (95% CI = 1.74, 2.48) times higher odds of past-year prescription opioid misuse relative to no social withdrawal. Predicted probabilities of misuse are 1% among those with no social withdrawal, but 6% among those experiencing severe social withdrawal. A nonsignificant interaction shows this relationship is consistent across years. These estimates are robust to numerous controls and alternative specifications. Discussion and Implications: Prescription opioid misuse is associated with social withdrawal. Social withdrawal is bound up with, and yet independent of, mental and physical health. Addressing the social causes of social withdrawal, as well as mental and physical health, could advance addressing opioid misuse among older adults.

Indexed as

National Survey on Drug Use and HealthSocial interactionSocioemotional selectivity theory

Identifiers

PMID40600025
PMCPMC12210946

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.