prescription misuse
Improper drug use
Prescription misuse is taking medication in ways other than prescribed—wrong doses, someone else's pills, or for purposes beyond medical need.
The term covers a spectrum from accidentally doubling up on painkillers to deliberately crushing and snorting them for a high.
Prescription misuse has driven the opioid epidemic.
The phrase often appears in public health contexts as a less stigmatizing alternative to "abuse."
- opioidsReceptor-binding pain relievers
- addictionCompulsive substance reliance
- substance use disorderCompulsive intake despite harm
- overdoseHarmful excess intake
- pillsOral medication units
pain clinic · pill mill · painkillers · abuse · dependency · doctor shopping · drug seeking · pharmacy · refill · controlled substance · fentanyl · oxy · diversion · street value · hoarding · crushing · snorting · tolerance
- substance abuseaddiction, abuse, drug abuse, alcohol abuse, substance use
- substance usedrug use, alcohol use, substance abuse, drug abuse, recreational use
- addictionaddiction, drug addiction, substance abuse, drug dependence, substance dependency
prescription, prescriptions, prescribe, prescribes, prescribed, prescribing, prescriber, prescribers, prescriptive