Das Gesundheitswesen
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Das Gesundheitswesen · Jun 2007
[Utilisation of medical resources of patients with pain undergoing an outpatient opioid therapy].
In Germany, opioid therapy of patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain has not been sufficiently scrutinised. Furthermore, no observational resource utilisation study for these patients concerning the treatment with opioids is available. For the analysis of outpatient costs 6 months before and after the first prescription of different opioids (oxycodone HCI, fentanyl TD, morphine retard), data from the IMS disease analyser (mediplus) database were employed. ⋯ The number of consultations rose significantly after the first prescription of opioids. Patients with chronic pain, who are treated with long-lasting opioids for the first time, initially use considerably more healthcare resources. The type of opioid influences the amount of resource utilisation.