Articles: opioid.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2014
Multicenter StudyPolypharmacy in patients with advanced cancer and pain: a European cross-sectional study of 2282 patients.
Patients with advanced cancer need multiple drugs to control symptoms and to treat cancer and concomitant diseases. At the same time, the goal of treatment changes as life expectancy becomes limited. This results in a risk for polypharmacy, maintained use of unneeded drugs, and drug-drug interactions (DDIs). ⋯ Patients with cancer treated with a World Health Organization Step III opioid use a high number of drugs. Nonopioid analgesics and corticosteroids are frequently used, but different patterns of use between countries were found. Many patients receive unneeded drugs and are at risk of serious DDIs. These findings demonstrate that drug therapy in these patients needs to be evaluated continuously.
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Drug Alcohol Depend · Dec 2014
ReviewWhat we know, and don't know, about the impact of state policy and systems-level interventions on prescription drug overdose.
Drug overdose deaths have been rising since the early 1990s and is the leading cause of injury death in the United States. Overdose from prescription opioids constitutes a large proportion of this burden. State policy and systems-level interventions have the potential to impact prescription drug misuse and overdose. ⋯ While important efforts are underway to affect prescriber and patient behavior, data on state policy and systems-level interventions are limited and inconsistent. Improving the evidence base is a critical need so states, regulatory agencies, and organizations can make informed choices about policies and practices that will improve prescribing and use, while protecting patient health.
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Multicenter Study
Clinical and genetic factors related to cancer-induced bone pain and bone pain relief.
The study objective was to evaluate whether there are clinical or genetic differences between patients with cancer-induced bone pain (CIBP) and patients with non-CIBP, and, in the CIBP group, in those with good versus poor opioid response. ⋯ Patients with CIBP who were taking opioids had a clinical profile slightly different from that of the non-CIBP group. However, no specific genetic pattern emerged for CIBP versus non-CIBP or for responsive versus nonresponsive patients with CIBP.
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This study aimed to investigate the risk of death, development of cancer, and hospital inpatient admissions resulting from injuries and toxicity/poisoning among opioid users with chronic noncancer pain. A population-based cohort of 13,127 adults, who have participated in the Danish Health Interview Surveys in 2000 or 2005 and have been followed up prospectively by registers until the end of 2011, were classified according to the absence or presence of chronic pain (ie, pain lasting ⩾ 6 months) and long-term or short-term opioid use (individuals using at least 1 prescription per month for 6 months in the previous year and at least 1 prescription in the previous year, respectively). The risk of all-cause mortality was 1.72 (95% confidence interval [CI]=1.23-2.41) times higher among long-term opioid users than among individuals without chronic pain. ⋯ No deaths among opioid users were caused by accidents or suicides, although opioid users had higher risks of injuries and toxicity/poisoning resulting in hospital inpatient admissions than individuals without chronic pain. The risk of all-cause mortality was significantly higher among long-term opioid users, but no obvious associations between long-term opioid use and cause-specific mortality were observed. However, opioid use increased the risk of injuries and toxicity/poisoning resulting in hospital inpatient admissions.
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Opioids can suppress testosterone in men, which can lead to extensive morbidity. Identifying risk factors for androgen deficiency in men using daily opioids could improve monitoring and safety. ⋯ Use of long-acting opioids is a key risk factor in the development of androgen deficiency. Dose was significantly associated with androgen deficiency, but more so for men on short-acting than on long-acting opioids.