In surgical patients, time to pain resolution, complete recovery from surgery, and opioid cessation were found to be predicted by the worst pain occurring 10 days after surgery.
Several factors were found to be associated with the use of nonmedical prescription opioids in adolescents.
Persistent opioid use in opioid-naive adolescents and young adults undergoing surgery or dental procedures may be associated with long-term use of opioids by a relative.
Opioid-related deaths, particularly those associated with synthetic opioids, increased in the eastern United States between 1999 and 2016, leading to lower life expectancies.
Other significant predictors of suicidal behaviors in adolescents who misuse opioids include sexual identity, history of sexual assault or bullying, and co-occurring substance use.
A series of 3 articles published in the Lancet is dedicated to highlighting the nature of current postsurgical pain management practices, including the use of peri- and postoperative opioids, that are thought to play a part in driving the opioid crisis.
The demographic characteristics and migraine diagnosis of pediatric patients with headache were found to be associated with the use of evidence-based medicine and prescriptions for opioids and barbiturates as first-line treatment.
The Food and Drug Administration is requiring labeling changes for all opioid analgesics used in the outpatient setting, to provide additional guidance on safe opioid tapering. The changes will provide more information on how to safely decrease the dose in opioid-dependent patients. However, as the agency noted in a press release, “there is no standard…
Physicians reported that a lack of training in brief intervention and reimbursement make providing screening and intervention more difficult when caring for youth with possible substance use disorders.
According to the results of a recently published study, FDANxSpray, the FDA-approved Narcan device for nasal administration, was found to yield higher plasma concentrations of naloxone compared to other devices used to treat opioid overdoses.
