Skip to main content

Opioid Epidemic Week Part Three: Some Thoughts For the Future

I'm sure after reading parts one and two of this series, chronic pain patients might feel a little anxious...and that is certainly understandable.  Sometimes change is good, but sometimes, it's difficult.

Image Source: Wikimedia


It's hard to know exactly how these guidelines will affect health care delivery of pain management going forward. First of all, remember that these guidelines are non-binding. No practitioner, regardless of specialty, is being forced to comply. For those patients who are doing well on established regimens, I do not expect much to change.

The biggest changes, in my humble opinion, will affect those who are newly diagnosed with chronic pain conditions.  The guidelines emphasize that more conservative measures be the first approach to treatment.  Opioids should reserved for those who fail more conservative treatments, cancer patients, or those who are in palliative or end of life care.

There are also provisions in the guidelines for monitoring of patients who are currently on opioid regimens--including careful scrutiny of a patient's usage patterns or patterns of abuse.  Perhaps this is an area where established pain patients might experience the most change.

All in all, if you are an established patient, and you are doing well, I would not worry too much about any of this.  If you are a new patient, all the things I've been talking about in this blog since day one might be in your future!  
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Living with Chronic pain hits the big screen!

Been to the movies lately?  Jennifer Aniston is on the big screen in a recent release titled "Cake." Her character, Claire is a victim of chronic pain...she belongs to a support group, where all of the members are coming to terms with the suicide of one of their members.  Of course, she also takes pain medication and addiction is another of her problems...and of course there's more! I guess I am writing this post just to bring readers' attention to the fact that Hollywood has become aware of the crisis that is chronic pain.  This movie is a testament to that. People that don't have to live with this kind of pain don't fully understand the whole story.  Maybe this movie will shed some light on the issues. Here is the official trailer for the movie: Sources: prweb;NorthJersey.com;YouTube
Post a Comment
Read more

Effectiveness Of Ozone Injections Is No Longer Up In The Air

Most of us know someone who has osteoarthritis, if we don't have it ourselves.  Joint replacement surgery is a pretty common remedy when the joint becomes severely damaged and the patient is in a lot of pain.  With risk of complications from such a surgery, perhaps an alternative treatment should be tried first. One such remedy is the injection of a synthetic version of collagen(e.g. Synvisc®) into the affected joint.  This procedure restores the cushioning to a joint that has degenerated over the years. It can diminish the pain substantially and help put off joint replacement surgery for months to years.  The biggest drawback is that these products are expensive.   GoodRX , a web site that can be used to estimate the cost of medications, estimates the cost of these products to be over $1,000 each. Here's another example--and I am not sure how widely accepted this protocol has become since study authors introduced it in November 2015.  Are you ready for this? Inject
Post a Comment
Read more

Beware Of The Tick!

It's tick season, everyone! And while we all know about Lyme Disease and its lingering effects, a new problem has entered the scene. According to the CDC, the Powassan virus is another tick-borne disease that has recently been recognized. The CDC says symptoms become apparent anywhere from one week to one month after infection. Symptoms include vomiting, weakness, confusion, loss of coordination, problems with speech and seizures. Approximately half of those infected by this virus have permanent neurological symptoms, which can include muscle wasting, problems with memory, and recurrent headaches. Many people who have been infected with Powassan virus required hospitalization and sometimes even respiratory support (i.e., a respirator). Treatment is focused on supportive measures. In the meantime, preventive measures are the best way to avoid Lyme disease, Powassan virus , or any other tick-borne virus.  You can read more about preventive measures by clicking here . Sour
Post a Comment
Read more