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. 2020 Jun;219(6):969-975.
doi: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2019.06.022. Epub 2019 Jun 28.

Perioperative opioid use and pain-related outcomes in the Veterans Health Administration

Tina Hernandez-Boussard  1 , Laura A Graham  2 , Ian Carroll  3 , Elise A Dasinger  4 , Ashley L Titan  5 , Melanie S Morris  4 , Mary T Hawn  2
Affiliations

Perioperative opioid use and pain-related outcomes in the Veterans Health Administration

Tina Hernandez-Boussard et al. Am J Surg. 2020 Jun.

Abstract

Understanding variation in perioperative opioid exposure and its effect on patients' outcomes is critical for pain management. This study characterized perioperative exposure to morphine and its association with postoperative pain and 30-day readmissions. We utilized nationwide Veterans Healthcare Administration (VHA) data on four high-volume surgical procedures, 2007-2014. We identified 235,239 Veterans undergoing orthopedic, general, or vascular surgery; 5.4% high trajectories (116.1 OME/Day), 53.2% medium trajectories (39.7 OME/Day), and 41.4% low trajectories (19.1 OME/Day). Modeled estimates suggest that patients in the high OME group had higher risk of a pain-related readmission (OR: 1.59; CI: 1.39, 1.83) compared to the low OME trajectory. Yet when stratified by pain trajectory, patients with high pain and high OME had lower risk of a pain-related readmission compared to patients in the high pain low OME group (OR: 0.76, CI: 0.62, 0.94). In conclusion, patients receiving high perioperative OME are more likely to return to care for pain-related problems. This study highlights opportunities to reduce the amount of prescriptions opioids in the communities.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interests

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.

Figures

Fig. 1A..
Fig. 1A..
Average daily inpatient oral morphine equivalents (OME) across postoperative days stratified by postoperative OME trajectory.
Fig. 1B.
Fig. 1B.
Average maximum daily inpatient-reported pain (OME) across postoperative days stratified by preoperative opioid use.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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