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Non-medical use of opioid analgesics (OAs) has increased in the United States over the past decade. Concurrently, access to opioid agonist therapies (OATs) such as buprenorphine has expanded. However, there has been little in-depth qualitative exploration into circumstances surrounding buprenorphine diversion and non-prescribed use. This study reports on qualitative data from in-depth interviews conducted with persons in New York City reporting non-medical OA use in the past 12 months. Participants (n=42) were aged between 18 and 49 years. The majority were male (n=29) and non-Hispanic White (n=35). All participants self-reported physical opioid dependence. Motivations for non-prescribed buprenorphine use included the abatement of withdrawal symptoms or a self-initiated detoxification or treatment plan. Few participants reported buprenorphine use for euphoric effect, and no participants reported using buprenorphine as a primary drug. Buprenorphine diversion primarily occurred as a means of supporting ongoing illicit drug use, and no participants reported selling buprenorphine as a primary source of income. Participants reported misinformation around some key areas of buprenorphine induction and use, as well as stigma within peer networks and from drug treatment providers. As access to buprenorphine treatment continues to expand in the United States, enhancing patient education is a critical step toward minimizing diversion and incidental harms from non-prescribed use.

BACKGROUND: Buprenorphine is an opioid agonist medication that is both safe and effective in the treatment of opioid use disorders and the prevention of opioid overdoses. Despite this, media coverage has highlighted public concerns about the potential safety consequences of buprenorphine misuse and diversion. To address the possible contribution of buprenorphine to overdose mortality, we systematically tested post mortem blood specimens from decedents who had died of an unintentional drug overdoses in 2013. METHODS: We retrospectively tested consecutive drug overdose cases that occurred from June through October 2013. Cases with available blood specimens were tested for buprenorphine and norbuprenorphine using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Toxicology results were linked to death certificates and case files from New York City Vital Statistics and New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. RESULTS: Of the 98 unintentional drug overdose fatalities tested, only 2 (2.0%) tested positive for buprenorphine metabolites. All 98 unintentional fatalities involved multiple substances. CONCLUSIONS: Buprenorphine was infrequently found in drug overdose deaths in New York City. Since the safety and efficacy of buprenorphine are well documented, and overdoses resulting from buprenorphine treatment or diversion are very rare, facilitating access to buprenorphine treatment is strongly recommended.