Association Between Opioid Dosage Tapering and Opioid Overdose Among Long-Term Higher-Dose Opioid Users.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

There has been a steady decline in the national opioid-dispensing rate in recent years. However, emerging evidence that suggests that abrupt discontinuation of opioids for pain may increase overdose risk. The authors examined associations between prescribed opioid tapering and short-term risk of overdose among adults who have received a new long-term high-dose opioid prescription.

Methods

This cohort study included adults (aged ≥18 years) without cancer who were newly prescribed a long-term high-dose opioid, that is, daily dose ≥50 morphine milligram equivalents for ≥183 days, between 2013 and 2018 in Kaiser Permanente Southern California. Opioid tapering within the evaluation period (3 months after being prescribed long-term high-dose opioid) was defined as a r

SUBMITTER: Zhou H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12508818 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature