Articles: opioid.
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To examine the impact of three sequential statewide policy and legislative interventions on opioid prescribing practices among privately insured individuals in North Carolina. ⋯ The voluntary prescription drug monitoring program launched in 2010 only marginally affected opioid prescribing patterns on its own, but its redeployment as an investigative and clinical tool in multifaceted public policy approaches by the state medical board and legislature later in the decade plausibly contributed to notable declines in prescription rates and days' supply. This study lends new emphasis to the importance of enforcement mechanisms for state and national policies seeking to reverse this critical public health crisis.
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Dec 2021
Trajectories of opioid consumption from day of surgery to 28 days postoperatively: a prospective cohort study in patients undergoing abdominal, joint, or spine surgery.
Descriptions of opioid use trajectories and their association with postsurgical pain and opioid consumption are limited. We hypothesized that trajectories of opioid consumption in the first 28 days following surgery would be associated with unique patterns of pain and duration of opioid use. ⋯ We observed distinct opioid use trajectories following abdominal and joint or spine surgery that were associated with different patterns of pain and duration of opioid use postoperatively. Prediction of postoperative opioid use trajectory groups may be clinically important for identifying risk of prolonged opioid use.
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J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother · Dec 2021
Transdermal Fentanyl Usage in Working-age Patients Undergoing Cancer Treatment: Prescription Pattern Analysis Using Large Claims Data in Japan.
The number of working-age individuals undergoing cancer treatment has been increasing. In these patients, transdermal fentanyl is the preferred treatment. However, it is known to have (1) pharmacodynamic interactions with benzodiazepines and (2) fever-induced pharmacokinetic variations. ⋯ This increased to 39.3% (n = 298) within 30 days. Predictive factors for fever using patients' baseline characteristics were male sex, gastrointestinal cancer, hematological cancer, and renal disease. To provide adequate pharmacotherapy to working-age patients undergoing cancer treatment with transdermal fentanyl, medical staff should pay attention to (1) avoid adding benzodiazepines easily and (2) monitor patients having predictors for fever to avoid fentanyl-related adverse events.
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This study aimed to identify the benefits of quadratus lumborum block (QLB) in terms of postoperative analgesic effects in adult participants undergoing hip surgery. ⋯ Our meta-analysis showed that QLB when compared to no block clinically decreased opioid requirements, reduced PONV, and improved participants' satisfaction. QLB also seems to be significantly superior to no block in terms of pain score, but its clinical importance remains unclear.