Validity of Self-Reported Misuse of Prescription Opioid Analgesics

Aim: To determine concurrent validity of self-reported misuse of prescription opioids. Design and Setting: Cross-sectional study in five U.S. methadone maintenance programs. Participants: 92 addicts. Measurements: Self-reported questionnaire assessing past-month misuse of 14 opioid analgesics, and color photographs of five opioid analgesics with instructions to mark those used in the past month “to get high.” Concordance between self-report and photograph endorsement was assessed via Kappa statistic. Findings: 29 respondents completed both questionnaire and photograph endorsements. Kappas were 0.62 (OxyContin®), 0.59 (methadone), 0.49 (Dilaudid®), and 0.46 (generic extended-release oxycodone). Conclusions: Good-to-fair concurrent validity of self-reported abuse was seen for OxyContin®, methadone, Dilaudid®, and generic extended-release oxycodone.