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Time-to-Cessation of Postoperative Opioids: A Population-Level Analysis of the Veterans Affairs Health Care System.
Time-to-Cessation of Postoperative Opioids: A Population-Level Analysis of the Veterans Affairs Health Care System. Pain medicine Mudumbai, S. C., Oliva, E. M., Lewis, E. T., Trafton, J., Posner, D., Mariano, E. R., Stafford, R. S., Wagner, T., Clark, J. D. 2016; 17 (9): 1732-1743Abstract
This study aims to determine 1) the epidemiology of perioperative opioid use; and 2) the association between patterns of preoperative opioid use and time-to-cessation of postoperative opioids.Retrospective, cohort study.National, population-level study of Veterans Healthcare Administration (VHA) electronic clinical data.All VHA patients (n?=?64,391) who underwent surgery in 2011, discharged after stays of =1?day, and receiving =1 opioid prescription within 90 days of discharge.Patients' preoperative opioid use were categorized as 1) no opioids, 2) tramadol only, 3) short-acting (SA) acute/intermittent (= 90 days fill), 4) SA chronic (> 90 days fill), or 5) any long-acting (LA). After defining cessation as 90 consecutive, opioid-free days, the authors calculated time-to-opioid-cessation (in days), from day 1 to day 365, after hospital discharge. The authors developed extended Cox regression models witha prioriidentified predictors. Sensitivity analyses used alternative cessation definitions (30 or 180 consecutive days).Almost 60% of the patients received preoperative opioids: tramadol (7.5%), SA acute/intermittent (24.1%), SA chronic (17.5%), and LA (5.2%). For patients opioid-free preoperatively, median time-to-cessation of opioids postoperatively was 15 days. The SA acute/intermittent cohort (HR?=1.96; 95% CI?=1.92-2.00) had greater risk for prolonged time-to-cessation than those opioid-free (reference), but lower risk than those taking tramadol only, SA chronic (HR?= 9.09; 95% CI?= 8.33-9.09), or LA opioids (HR?=?9.09; 95% CI?=?8.33-10.00). Diagnoses of chronic pain, substance-use, or affective disorders were weaker positive predictors. Sensitivity analyses maintained findings.Greater preoperative levels of opioid use were associated with progressively longer time-to-cessation postoperatively.
View details for DOI 10.1093/pm/pnw015
View details for PubMedID 27084410