MMW Fortschritte der Medizin
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical Trial
[Application of a seven-day buprenorphine transdermal patch in multimorbid patients on long-term ibuprofen or diclofenac].
The objective of this study was to evaluate the benefit of a seven-day buprenorphine transdermal patch for patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain previously receiving long-term treatment with ibuprofen or diclofenac alone. Data of a subgroup of 703 patients were analysed which were part of a multicenter observational study with 3,295 patients. These patients had previously received ibuprofen or diclofenac and were characterized by older age,the presence of gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, and renal risk factors and the existence of chronic musculoskeletal pain. ⋯ In addition, particularly multimorbid patients benefit from opioids such as buprenorphine due to the lack of cardiac, renal and gastrointestinal toxicity. Constant analgesia, improvement of daily activities and reduction of tablets were reported as important advantages of the seven-day patch. In conclusion, the seven-day buprenorphine patch is a valuable therapeutic option for patients with insufficient analgesia on long-term ibuprofen or diclofenac.