Medical Use of Long-term Extended-release Opioid Analgesics in Commercially Insured Adults in the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

We examined the proportion of patients initiating extended-release (ER) opioids who become long-term users and describe how pain-related diagnoses before initiation of opioid therapy vary between drugs and over time.

Methods

Using MarketScan (2006-2015), a US national commercial insurance database, we examined pain-related diagnoses in the 182-day baseline period before initiation of ER opioid therapy to characterize indications for opioid initiation. We report the proportion who became long-term users, the median length of opioid therapy, and the proportion with cancer and other noncancer chronic pain, by active ingredient.

Results

Among 1,077,566 adults initiating ER opioids, 31% became long-term users, with a median length of use of 209 days. The most co

SUBMITTER: Young JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7534397 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature