American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Aug 2020
New Opioid Use After Invasive Mechanical Ventilation and Hospital Discharge.
Rationale: Patients who receive invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV) are usually exposed to opioids as part of their sedation regimen. The rates of posthospital prescribing of opioids are unknown. Objectives: To determine the frequency of persistent posthospital opioid use among patients who received IMV. ⋯ The rate of persistent use was slightly higher than for matched non-ICU patients (2.6% vs. 1.5%; adjusted odds ratio, 1.37 [95% CI, 1.19-1.58]). Conclusions: A total of 20% of IMV patients received a prescription for opioids after hospital discharge, and 2.6% met criteria for persistent use, an average of 300 new persistent users per year in a population of 14 million. Receipt of surgery was the factor most strongly associated with persistent use.