Opioid

Despite the implementation of protocols to reduce opioid prescriptions during hospitalizations, approximately 90% of women who underwent cesarean delivery and did not use opioids in the hospital were discharged with an opioid prescription, according to findings from two related studies presented at Anesthesiology 2019.

Two advancements in eosinophilic esophagitis — the success of the biologic therapy Dupixent in reducing symptoms and improving quality-of life, and the accuracy of a minimally invasive diagnostic test in distinguishing active vs. inactive disease — were among the stop stories in gastroenterology last week.

While prescription opioid use was associated with increased mortality and hospitalization risks for all patients regardless of kidney function, researchers found the risk for death was highest among those with moderate to severe chronic kidney disease.

The FDA announced that it and the Drug Enforcement Administration sent warning letters to four online networks that operate 10 websites for illegally marketing “unapproved and misbranded” versions of opioid medicines, including tramadol.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents in a nationwide survey showed interest in using marijuana or cannabinoids for pain management, with many reporting that they believed those options were safer than opioids and had fewer side effects than other pain medications.

The FDA boxed warning issued in 2016 highlighting the risks of coprescribing opioids and benzodiazepines was linked to a decrease in the number of patients with coprescriptions in the U.S., according to a research letter published in JAMA Psychiatry.

The rate of postoperative opioid prescriptions filled was seven times higher in the United States and Canada than in Sweden, according to a study recently published in JAMA Network Open.

A CDC spokesperson said provisional data and other reports signify that “progress is being made” in the opioid epidemic.

State mandates that require both prescribers and dispensers to enter and use prescription drug monitoring programs led to greater reductions in opioid prescriptions and opioid-related hospital use compared with states that had less strict or no mandates, according to a study published in Health Affairs.

Primary care physicians increased their opioid prescribing when appointments were later in the day or if they were running behind schedule, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open.