- Adolescents and young adults lost an estimated 1.2 million years of life due to unintentional drug overdoses over between 2015 and 2019, according to a research letter published in JAMA. About 3,300 adolescents ages 10–19 years old died of an unintentional drug overdose in the U.S. during the five-year period, representing about 187,078 years of life lost. That number rises to nearly 22,000 young people when expanding the age group to overdose deaths among those among 10–24 years old. The authors note that years of life lost offers “important context to the overdose crisis by better representing what is meant to society by the loss of adolescents and young people.” (Letter here)
February 1, 2022
Opioid/Substance Use Disorders