Can Alternative Pain Management Reduce Opioid Dependence?
Managing moderate or severe postoperative pain, which affects 75% of patients in the United States, remains a challenge for physicians.
Opioids
Florida’s House Bill 21 Effectively Reduced Opioid Use Across the State
Implementation of Florida’s House Bill 21 (HB21) in July 2018 has led to reductions in opioid use and changes in opioid prescribing practices across the state.
Telementoring Shows Promise in Opioid Management
The project, which began in New Mexico in 2003, uses videoconferencing to connect remote physicians to specialists who provide mentorship and insight into specific disease states.
The Link Between Opioid Receptor Function and Ethnic Disparities in Pain Management
Using μ-opioid imaging outcomes, researchers examined differences in BPND; [11C]carfentanil among healthy adults identifying as non-Hispanic black and non-Hispanic white.
Opioid-Related Unintentional Deaths and Suicides Have Increased Since 2000
Between 2000 and 2017, unintentional deaths and suicides related to opioid use have increased substantially, whereas overall deaths from have decreased.
Opioid Overprescribing Driven By Top 1% of Providers
The majority of opioid prescribing is attributable to a small proportion of practitioners, according to results published in the BMJ.
Navigating Patient Pain Under Stricter Opioid Prescribing Laws
Investigators explored concerns with regard to opioid prescribing in compliance with new regulations in a commentary piece.
Adult Dental Patients Frequently Overprescribed Opioids
Adult dental patients are frequently overprescribed opioids, with about half of prescribed opioids exceeding the recommended three-day supply.
Most Patients With Opioid-Related Hospitalizations Have Chronic Conditions
Since patients with chronic diseases are often prescribed opioids, researchers sought to examine the association between opioid-related hospitalization and patients with chronic disease. Since patients with chronic diseases are often prescribed opioids, researchers sought to examine the association between opioid-related hospitalization and patients with chronic disease.
More Work Needed to Improve Opioid Treatment Programs
A recent survey of US-based opioid treatment programs (OTPs) suggests that many programs should increase the use of methadone, buprenorphine, and extended-release naltrexone in treating opioid use disorder (OUD).
