Prevalence and patterns of methamphetamine use and mental health disparity in the United States

Abstract

Methamphetamine is a growing health problem, as is mental health illness. However, no studies have investigated the combinatory effects of both diseases or characterized national trends over a period of time greater than 10 years. We evaluated US trends in mental health disorder-related hospital admissions (MHD-HAs) and compared them with those with concurrent methamphetamine use (MHD-HA-MUs), comparing the demographic characteristics from 2008 to 2020. Our findings reveal a significant increase in MHD-HA-MUs, increasing 10.5-fold, compared with a 1.4-fold increase in MHD-HAs. We also found a 1.53 times higher adjusted prevalence ratio of MHD-HA-MUs compared with MHD-HAs, even when adjusted for confounding factors. MHD-HA-MUs increased significantly among male patients (13-fold), non-Hispanic Black patients (39-fold), those aged 41–64 years (16-fold), and the South (24-fold). Overall, the data suggest that there are synergistic effects with methamphetamine use and mental health disorder, highlighting this patient group’s unique needs, requiring distinct action. Investigating the influence of using methamphetamine on the rate of admissions for mental health disorders, this study finds that concurrent methamphetamine use increased mental health-related hospital admissions 10.5-fold. Increased prevalence was also found for men, non-Hispanic Black people, middle-aged adults, and people living in the South.