Self-Harm as a Contributor to the Opioid Epidemic: Data From the Toxicology Investigators Consortium Registry

A majority of serious opioid overdoses were sequelae of opioid misuse, but over a quarter were intentional self-harm attempts, primarily involving pharmaceutical opioids. Decreased prescribing of opioids and benzodiazepines after 2016-2017 may have resulted in decreased pharmaceutical opioid and benzodiazepine misuse and self-harm attempts. Similar trends were not seen for nonpharmaceutical opioids.