Spatial Patterns of Opioid Overdose Mortality Risk Across Urban, Transitional, and Rural Communities Using
Gia Barboza-Salerno1, Taylor Harrington2
1Colleges of Social Work and Public Health, The Ohio State University, 1735 College Road, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA. Barboza-salerno.1@osu.edu.
Summary
Fatal opioid overdose risk is higher in deprived neighborhoods and areas with more nighttime light, even in rural zones. Interventions should target neighborhood social and environmental factors to reduce deaths.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Geographic variations in drug overdose patterns are known.
- Few studies link remote sensing data to overdose risk factors across different scales.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze fatal opioid overdoses using remote sensing and neighborhood deprivation data.
- To assess environmental and social factors influencing overdose risk across geographic scales.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective ecological study of fatal opioid overdoses (2018-2023) in Cook County, Illinois.
- Classified urbanicity using Global Human Settlement Layer Model (GHSL-MOD) satellite data.
- Combined environmental indicators with neighborhood deprivation measures; used Bayesian spatiotemporal modeling.
Main Results:
- Overdose risk showed spatial clustering and strong associations with social and environmental factors.
- High neighborhood deprivation correlated with over seven times higher overdose risk.
- Nighttime light intensity (NLI) linked to increased risk; greenness and park access showed no protective effect.
- Increasing overdose trends observed in rural/transitional zones, despite higher risk in urban centers.
Conclusions:
- Neighborhood physical and social features significantly influence fatal opioid overdose risk.
- Targeted, place-based strategies incorporating these factors are needed for intervention.
- Surveillance and intervention should extend beyond urban centers to address geographic disparities.
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