Delay among opioid users in seeking first addiction treatment

Early treatment seeking for opioid addiction is related to an increased chance of treatment success. New patients seeking treatment, and the time they take to seek it, have scarcely been described in Spain and Europe. The aim of the present study was to identify individual factors related to the delay in seeking treatment for opiate addiction for the first time. A cross-sectional study of opiate users admitted for the first time to treatment for addiction in public centers in the Community of Madrid between 2017-2019 (n = 366) was conducted. The time from the onset of consumption to treatment (TTT) was the dependent variable. A general descriptive analysis of users was performed, followed by a bivariate analysis after dividing the sample into two groups (TTT < 5 years and TTT ≥ 5 years). To identify those factors associated with an increase in TTT, a multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed. The main profile of the study population was: middle-aged, Spanish, unemployed, male, smoked heroin user. The median TTT was: 9.27 years for men and 4.75 for women. Factors associated with higher TTT were: > 49 years (OR: 5.87; 95%CI 1.73-20.00), unemployment (OR: 2.54; 95%CI 1.11-5.83), low educational level (OR: 2.18; 95%CI 1.04-4.59), homelessness (OR: 4.18; 95%CI 1.29-13.57), first use not at home (OR: 2.54; 95%CI 1.11-5.84) and HCV positive (OR: 2.97; 95%CI 1.00-8.82). Delays in seeking treatment are related to older users and lower sociocultural level. People at risk of social exclusion should be prioritized in interventions to facilitate their access to treatment services.