The CDC issued primary care clinicians updated guidelines for prescribing opioids for chronic pain patients, outside of active cancer treatment, palliative care and end-of-life care.
Here are seven things to know:
1. Per the recommendations, opioids like OxyCotin and Percocet should not be the first line of defense to treat chronic pain.
2. If providers deem opioids appropriate, the CDC recommends providers to start with the lowest possible dose and increase the dose gradually. Providers should use opioids in combination with nonpharmacologic therapy and non-opioid pharmacologic therapy, as appropriate.
3. When prescribing opioids, providers should prescribe immediate-release opioids, as opposed to extended-released.
4. The recommendations state in acute pain cases, a three day to seven day course of opioid drug therapy should suffice to combat pain the patient may be experiencing.
5. If patients need opioids from more than one prescription company, physicians should check state monitoring programs, if they are available.
6. Providers should assess opioid benefits and harms to patients within one week to four weeks of starting opioid therapy or when raising a dose. Providers should assess the benefits and harms of continued therapy every three months or more.
7. Prior to starting therapy, clinicians should use urine testing and consider urine drug testing every year to assess patients for prescribed medications, controlled prescription drugs and illicit drugs.
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