Acta anaesthesiologica Taiwanica : official journal of the Taiwan Society of Anesthesiologists
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There is a global crisis in access to pain management in the world. WHO estimates that 4.65 billion people live in countries where medical opioid consumption is near to zero. For 2010, WHO considered a per capita consumption of 216.7 mg morphine equivalents adequate, while Taiwan had a per capita consumption of 0.05 mg morphine equivalents in 2007. ⋯ The GOPI project found many examples of such barriers in Asia. Access to opioid medicines in Taiwan can be improved by analysing the national situation and drafting a plan. The WHO policy guidelines Ensuring Balance in National Policies on Controlled Substances can be helpful for achieving this purpose, as well as international guidelines for pain treatment.
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Acta Anaesthesiol Taiwan · Jun 2015
The unique role of transdermal buprenorphine in the global chronic pain epidemic.
Pain is a global epidemic, exacerbated by barriers to access of opioid analgesics. Regulations about opioids attempt to protect public health from the risks of harmful use of opioids, diversion, and dependence. Transdermal buprenorphine is an effective opioid analgesic agent with unique properties that may make it particularly well suited for more widespread use. ⋯ Although buprenorphine has been associated with certain opioid-related adverse effects, such as dizziness and nausea, it is associated with a lower rate of constipation than many other opioid analgesics. The potential for nonmedical use of buprenorphine is relatively low compared with other opioid agents. Buprenorphine has a relatively low likeability for nonmedical use and the transdermal matrix patch renders the substance particularly difficult to extract for illicit purposes.