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Nunes JC, Costa GPA, Weleff J, Rogan M, Compton P, De Aquino JP. Assessing pain in persons with opioid use disorder: Approaches, techniques and special considerations. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2024. [PMID: 38556851 DOI: 10.1111/bcp.16055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Pain and opioid use disorder (OUD) are inextricably linked, as the former can be a risk factor for the development of the latter, and over a third of persons with OUD suffer concomitant chronic pain. Assessing pain among people with OUD is challenging, because ongoing opioid use brings changes in pain responses and most pain assessment tools have not been validated for this population. In this narrative review, we discuss the fundamentals of pain assessment for populations with OUD. First, we describe the biological, psychological and social aspects of the pain experience among people with OUD, as well as how opioid-related phenomena may contribute to the pain experience in this population. We then review methods to assess pain, including (1) traditional self-reported methods, such visual analogue scales and structured questionnaires; (2) behavioural observations and physiological indicators; (3) and laboratory-based approaches, such as quantitative sensory testing. These methods are considered from a perspective that encompasses both pain and OUD. Finally, we discuss strategies for improving pain assessment in persons with OUD and implications for future research, including educational strategies for multidisciplinary teams. We highlight the substantial gaps that persist in this literature, particularly regarding the applicability of current pain assessment methods to persons with OUD, as well as the generalizability of the existing results from adjacent populations on chronic opioid therapy but without OUD. As research linking pain and OUD evolves, considering the needs of diverse populations with complex psychosocial backgrounds, clinicians will be better equipped to reduce these gaps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julio C Nunes
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Gabriel P A Costa
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Ribeirão Preto, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Jeremy Weleff
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Michael Rogan
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Peggy Compton
- Department of Family and Community Health, School of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Joao P De Aquino
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
- VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, Connecticut, USA
- Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit, Connecticut Mental Health Center, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
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Rieb LM, DeBeck K, Hayashi K, Wood E, Nosova E, Milloy MJ. Withdrawal-associated injury site pain prevalence and correlates among opioid-using people who inject drugs in Vancouver, Canada. Drug Alcohol Depend 2020; 216:108242. [PMID: 32861135 PMCID: PMC7850369 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2020] [Revised: 08/11/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pain can return temporarily to old injury sites during opioid withdrawal. The prevalence and impact of opioid withdrawal-associated injury site pain (WISP) in various groups is unknown. METHODS Using data from observational cohorts, we estimated the prevalence and correlates of WISP among opioid-using people who inject drugs (PWID). Between June and December 2015, data on WISP and opioid use behaviours were elicited from participants in three ongoing prospective cohort studies in Vancouver, Canada, who were aged 18 years and older and who self-reported at least daily injection of heroin or non-medical presciption opioids. RESULTS Among 631 individuals, 276 (43.7 %) had a healed injury (usually pain-free), among whom 112 (40.6 %) experienced WISP, representing 17.7 % of opioid-using PWID interviewed. In a multivariable logistic regression model, WISP was positively associated with having a high school diploma or above (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] = 2.23, 95 % Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.31-3.84), any heroin use in the last six months (AOR = 2.00, 95 % CI: 1.14-3.57), feeling daily pain that required medication (AOR = 2.06, CI: 1.18-3.63), and negatively associated with older age at first drug use (AOR = 0.96, 95 % CI: 0.93-0.99). Among 112 individuals with WISP, 79 (70.5 %) said that having this pain affected their opioid use behaviour, of whom 57 (72.2 %) used more opioids, 19 (24.1 %) avoided opioid withdrawal, while 3 (3.8 %) no longer used opioids to avoid WISP. CONCLUSIONS WISP is prevalent among PWID with a previous injury, and may alter opioid use patterns. Improved care strategies for WISP are warrented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Launette Marie Rieb
- Department of Family Practice, University of British Columbia, 5950 University Boulevard, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Kora DeBeck
- School of Public Policy, Simon Fraser University, 515 West Hastings Street, Office 3269, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada,British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, 1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Kanna Hayashi
- British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, 1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada,Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Blusson Hall, Room 11300, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Evan Wood
- British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, 1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada,Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, 2775 Laurel Street, 10thFloor, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Ekaterina Nosova
- British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, 1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - M-J Milloy
- British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, 1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, 2775 Laurel Street, 10thFloor, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
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Pierre F, Ugur M, Faivre F, Doridot S, Veinante P, Massotte D. Morphine-dependent and abstinent mice are characterized by a broader distribution of the neurons co-expressing mu and delta opioid receptors. Neuropharmacology 2019; 152:30-41. [PMID: 30858104 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2019.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2019] [Accepted: 03/04/2019] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Opiate addiction develops as a chronic relapsing disorder upon drug recreational use or following misuse of analgesic prescription. Mu opioid (MOP) receptors are the primary molecular target of opiates but increasing evidence support in vivo functional heteromerization with the delta opioid (DOP) receptor, which may be part of the neurobiological processes underlying opiate addiction. Here, we used double knock-in mice co-expressing fluorescent versions of the MOP and DOP receptors to examine the impact of chronic morphine administration on the distribution of neurons co-expressing the two receptors. Our data show that MOP/DOP neuronal co-expression is broader in morphine-dependent mice and is detected in novel brain areas located in circuits related to drug reward, motor activity, visceral control and emotional processing underlying withdrawal. After four weeks of abstinence, MOP/DOP neuronal co-expression is still detectable in a large number of these brain areas except in the motor circuit. Importantly, chronic morphine administration increased the proportion of MOP/DOP neurons in the brainstem of morphine-dependent and abstinent mice. These findings establish persistent changes in the abstinent state that may modulate relapse and opiate-induced hyperalgesia and also point to the therapeutic potential of MOP/DOP targeting. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled 'Receptor heteromers and their allosteric receptor-receptor interactions'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Pierre
- Centre de la Recherche Nationale Scientifique, Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Strasbourg, France
| | - Muzeyyen Ugur
- Centre de la Recherche Nationale Scientifique, Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Strasbourg, France
| | - Fanny Faivre
- Centre de la Recherche Nationale Scientifique, Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Strasbourg, France
| | - Stéphane Doridot
- Centre de la Recherche Nationale Scientifique, Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Strasbourg, France; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Chronobiotron UMS 3415, Strasbourg, France
| | - Pierre Veinante
- Centre de la Recherche Nationale Scientifique, Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Strasbourg, France
| | - Dominique Massotte
- Centre de la Recherche Nationale Scientifique, Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Strasbourg, France.
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Fishbain DA, Pulikal A. Does Opioid Tapering in Chronic Pain Patients Result in Improved Pain or Same Pain vs Increased Pain at Taper Completion? A Structured Evidence-Based Systematic Review. PAIN MEDICINE 2018; 20:2179-2197. [DOI: 10.1093/pm/pny231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Objective
To support or refute the hypothesis that opioid tapering in chronic pain patients (CPPs) improves pain or maintains the same pain level by taper completion but does not increase pain.
Methods
Of 364 references, 20 fulfilled inclusion/exclusion criteria. These studies were type 3 and 4 (not controlled) but reported pre/post-taper pain levels. Characteristics of the studies were abstracted into tabular form for numerical analysis. Studies were rated independently by two reviewers for quality. The percentage of studies supporting the above hypothesis was determined.
Results
No studies had a rejection quality score. Combining all studies, 2,109 CPPs were tapered. Eighty percent of the studies reported that by taper completion pain had improved. Of these, 81.25% demonstrated this statistically. In 15% of the studies, pain was the same by taper completion. One study reported that by taper completion, 97% of the CPPs had improved or the same pain, but CPPs had worse pain in 3%. As such, 100% of the studies supported the hypothesis. Applying the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research Levels of Evidence Guidelines to this result produced an A consistency rating.
Conclusions
There is consistent type 3 and 4 study evidence that opioid tapering in CPPs reduces pain or maintains the same level of pain. However, these studies represented lower levels of evidence and were not designed to test the hypothesis, with the evidence being marginal in quality with large amounts of missing data. These results then primarily reveal the need for controlled studies (type 2) to address this hypothesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- David A Fishbain
- Departments of Psychiatry
- Departments of Neurological Surgery
- Departments of Anesthesiology, Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, Miami, Florida, USA
| | - Aditya Pulikal
- Departments of Anesthesiology, Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, Miami, Florida, USA
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Linking opioid-induced hyperalgesia and withdrawal-associated injury site pain: a case report. Pain Rep 2018; 3:e648. [PMID: 29922741 PMCID: PMC5999415 DOI: 10.1097/pr9.0000000000000648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2017] [Revised: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 03/08/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction and objectives: Understanding the details of one individual's experience with pain, opioid use and withdrawal may generate insights into possible relationships between opioid-induced hyperalgesia and withdrawal-associated injury site pain (WISP). Methods: This case study was extracted from a mixed methods study that characterized WISP. In 2014, the individual was recruited from a primary care clinic that prescribes opioid agonist therapy. In an interview, she completed a 35-item survey and elaborated on her own experience. Follow-up contact was made in June of 2017. Results: This 34-year-old white woman had several twisting injuries of her right knee between ages 13 and 15. The pain resolved each time in a few days, and she was pain free for 15 years. Around age 30, she initiated illicit oxycodone recreationally (not for pain) and developed an opioid use disorder. On detoxification, she experienced severe knee pain for 6 weeks that resolved postdetoxification but returned after subsequent oxycodone use and withdrawal episodes along with generalized skin sensitivity. This experience of WISP became a barrier to opioid cessation. Although nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories and gabapentin relieved WISP and methadone therapy assisted her opioid use disorder, an eventual change to sublingual buprenorphine/naloxone provided superior control of both. Conclusion: This case report illustrates that both opioid use and withdrawal can reactivate injury site pain, which can increase with dose escalation and repeated withdrawal events. The timing, trajectory, and neuropathic features of WISP reported here are consistent with those previously reported for the development of opioid-induced hyperalgesia, possibly linking these phenomena.
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Abstract
Supplemental Digital Content is Available in the Text. This descriptive case series among adults documents that pain can return temporarily at healed, previously pain-free injury sites during acute opioid withdrawal. Withdrawal pain can be a barrier to opioid cessation. Yet, little is known about old injury site pain in this context. We conducted an exploratory mixed-methods descriptive case series using a web-based survey and in-person interviews with adults recruited from pain and addiction treatment and research settings. We included individuals who self-reported a past significant injury that was healed and pain-free before the initiation of opioids, which then became temporarily painful upon opioid cessation—a phenomenon we have named withdrawal-associated injury site pain (WISP). Screening identified WISP in 47 people, of whom 34 (72%) completed the descriptive survey, including 21 who completed qualitative interviews. Recalled pain severity scores for WISP were typically high (median: 8/10; interquartile range [IQR]: 2), emotionally and physically aversive, and took approximately 2 weeks to resolve (median: 14; IQR: 24 days). Withdrawal-associated injury site pain intensity was typically slightly less than participants' original injury pain (median: 10/10; IQR: 3), and more painful than other generalized withdrawal symptoms which also lasted approximately 2 weeks (median: 13; IQR: 25 days). Fifteen surveyed participants (44%) reported returning to opioid use because of WISP in the past. Participants developed theories about the etiology of WISP, including that the pain is the brain's way of communicating a desire for opioids. This research represents the first known documentation that previously healed, and pain-free injury sites can temporarily become painful again during opioid withdrawal, an experience which may be a barrier to opioid cessation, and a contributor to opioid reinitiation.
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Carroll CP, Lanzkron S, Haywood C, Kiley K, Pejsa M, Moscou-Jackson G, Haythornthwaite JA, Campbell CM. Chronic Opioid Therapy and Central Sensitization in Sickle Cell Disease. Am J Prev Med 2016; 51:S69-77. [PMID: 27320469 PMCID: PMC5379857 DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2016.02.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2015] [Revised: 01/22/2016] [Accepted: 02/12/2016] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Chronic opioid therapy (COT) for chronic non-cancer pain is frequently debated, and its effectiveness is unproven in sickle cell disease (SCD). The authors conducted a descriptive study among 83 adult SCD patients and compared the severity of disease and pain symptoms among those who were prescribed COT (n=29) with those who were not using COT. All patients completed baseline laboratory pain assessment and questionnaires between January 2010 and June 2014. Thereafter, participants recorded daily pain, crises, function, and healthcare utilization for 90 days using electronic diaries. Analyses were conducted shortly after the final diary data collection period. Patients on COT did not differ on age, sex, or measures of disease severity. However, patients on COT exhibited greater levels of clinical pain (particularly non-crisis); central sensitization; and depression and increased diary measures of pain severity, function, and healthcare utilization on crisis and non-crisis diary days, as well as a greater proportion of days in crisis. Including depressive symptoms in multivariate models did not change the associations between COT and pain, interference, central sensitization, or utilization. Additionally, participants not on COT displayed the expected positive relationship between central sensitization and clinical pain, whereas those on COT demonstrated no such relationship, despite having both higher central sensitization and higher clinical pain. Overall, the results point out a high symptom burden in SCD patients on COT, including those on high-dose COT, and suggest that nociceptive processing in SCD patients on COT differs from those who are not.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Patrick Carroll
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
| | - Sophie Lanzkron
- Division of Hematology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Carlton Haywood
- Division of Hematology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Kasey Kiley
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Megan Pejsa
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | | | - Jennifer A Haythornthwaite
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Claudia M Campbell
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
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Dunn KE, Finan PH, Tompkins DA, Fingerhood M, Strain EC. Characterizing pain and associated coping strategies in methadone and buprenorphine-maintained patients. Drug Alcohol Depend 2015; 157:143-9. [PMID: 26518253 PMCID: PMC4663104 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.10.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2015] [Revised: 10/13/2015] [Accepted: 10/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Chronic pain is common among patients receiving opioid maintenance treatment (OMT) for opioid use disorder. To aid development of treatment recommendations for coexisting pain and opioid use disorder, it is necessary to characterize pain treatment needs and assess whether needs differ as a function of OMT medication. METHODS A point-prevalence survey assessing pain and engagement in coping strategies was administered to 179 methadone and buprenorphine-maintained patients. RESULTS Forty-two percent of participants were categorized as having chronic pain. Methadone patients had greater severity of pain relative to buprenorphine patients, though both groups reported high levels of interference with daily activities, and participants with pain attended the emergency room more frequently relative to participants without pain. Only 2 coping strategies were being utilized by more than 50% of participants (over-the-counter medication, prayer). CONCLUSIONS Results indicate that pain among OMT patients is common, severe, and of significant impairment. Methadone patients reported greater severity pain, particularly worse pain in the past 24h, though interference from pain in daily activities did not vary as a function of OMT. Most participants with pain were utilizing few evidenced-based pain coping strategies. Increasing OMT patient access to additional pain treatment strategies is an opportunity for immediate intervention, and similarities across OMT type suggest interventions do not need to be customized to methadone vs. buprenorphine patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly E Dunn
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.
| | - Patrick H Finan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - D Andrew Tompkins
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Michael Fingerhood
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Eric C Strain
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Dunn KE, Brooner RK, Clark MR. Severity and Interference of Chronic Pain in Methadone-Maintained Outpatients. PAIN MEDICINE 2014; 15:1540-8. [DOI: 10.1111/pme.12430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Eyler ECH. Chronic and acute pain and pain management for patients in methadone maintenance treatment. Am J Addict 2014; 22:75-83. [PMID: 23398230 DOI: 10.1111/j.1521-0391.2013.00308.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2011] [Revised: 03/01/2012] [Accepted: 08/20/2012] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Many individuals receiving methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) for opioid addiction also require treatment for acute or chronic pain, and the presence of pain is known to have a negative impact on patient health and function. However, effective pain management in this population is complicated by many factors, including heightened pain sensitivity, high opioid tolerance, illicit substance use, and variable cross-tolerance to opioid pain medications. This article reviews the recent literature on acute and chronic pain among, and pain treatment of, patients receiving MMT for opioid addiction and discusses the implications for effective pain management. Acute pain management among women maintained on methadone during and after labor and delivery is also discussed, as well as common concerns held by patients and providers about appropriate pain management strategies in the context of methadone maintenance and addiction treatment. METHODS One hundred nine articles were identified in a PubMed/MEDLINE electronic database search using the following search terms: methadone, methadone maintenance, methadone addiction, pain, pain management, chronic pain, and acute pain. Abstracts were reviewed for relevance, and additional studies were extracted from the reference lists of articles identified in the original search. RESULTS The pain sensitivity and pain responses of MMT patients differ significantly from those of patients not maintained on opioids, and few data are available to guide patient care. CONCLUSIONS AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE Rigorous studies are needed to identify and evaluate effective pain management approaches for this unique patient population and to improve patient treatment outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth C H Eyler
- JBS International, Inc., 5515 Security Lane, Suite 800, North Bethesda, MD 20852, USA.
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Johnson B, Faraone SV. Outpatient Detoxification Completion and One-Month Outcomes for Opioid Dependence: A Preliminary Study of a Neuropsychoanalytic Treatment in Pain Patients and Addicted Patients. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2013. [DOI: 10.1080/15294145.2013.10799827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Zarghami M, Masoum B, Shiran MR. Tramadol versus methadone for treatment of opiate withdrawal: a double-blind, randomized, clinical trial. J Addict Dis 2012; 31:112-7. [PMID: 22540433 DOI: 10.1080/10550887.2012.665728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of tramadol versus methadone for treatment of opiate withdrawal. Seventy patients randomly were assigned in two groups to receive either prescribed methadone (60 mg/day) or tramadol (600 mg/day). The withdrawal syndrome of patients was evaluated before and after rapid opiate detoxification using the Objective Opioid Withdrawal Scale (OOWS). No significant differences existed in overall OOWS scores between two groups (P = 0.11). Dropout rates were similar in both groups. Side effects in the tramadol group were as or less common than in the methadone group, with the exception of perspiration. Tramadol may be as effective as methadone in the control of withdrawal and could be considered as a potential substitute for methadone to manage opioids withdrawal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mehran Zarghami
- Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Mazandaran, University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, Sari, Iran
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Compton P, Canamar CP, Hillhouse M, Ling W. Hyperalgesia in heroin dependent patients and the effects of opioid substitution therapy. THE JOURNAL OF PAIN 2012; 13:401-9. [PMID: 22424799 PMCID: PMC3334366 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpain.2012.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2011] [Revised: 12/19/2011] [Accepted: 01/13/2012] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Evidence suggests that patients on opiate maintenance therapy for the treatment of addiction present with opioid-induced hyperalgesia. This study compared the experimental (cold-pressor, electrical stimulation) pain responses of 82 treatment-seeking heroin-dependent adults, randomized to methadone (METH, n = 11) or buprenorphine (BUP, n = 64) therapy, with matched drug free controls (n = 21). Heroin-dependent participants were evaluated at baseline (treatment entry), medication (METH or BUP) stabilization (4-8 weeks), and chronic administration (12-18 weeks), at trough (just prior to dosing) and peak (3 hours after dosing) plasma levels. Collection of the control group's pain responses occurred twice during a single session, 3 hours apart. Baseline comparisons indicate that heroin-dependent individuals demonstrate significantly shorter latencies to threshold and tolerance for cold-pressor pain than the control group. Across pain stimuli and time points, little change in pain responses was found over time, the exception being cold pressor pain tolerance, for which hyperalgesia significantly increased at trough METH/BUP levels in both groups as they stabilized in treatment. We conclude that heroin-dependent individuals are hyperalgesic, and that once stabilized in treatment, are not different in pain responses regardless of treatment agent. The effects of nonpharmacologic therapy and previous heroin use may explain increased hyperalgesia found with treatment. PERSPECTIVE To better understand the clinical phenomenon of opioid-induced hyperalgesia, this article describes experimental pain responses of heroin-dependent participants both prior to and over the course of maintenance therapy with methadone or buprenorphine. Hyperalgesia is present with illicit and treatment opioid use, and does not appear to appreciably improve over the course of treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peggy Compton
- School of Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-6918, USA.
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Wang H, Akbar M, Weinsheimer N, Gantz S, Schiltenwolf M. Longitudinal observation of changes in pain sensitivity during opioid tapering in patients with chronic low-back pain. PAIN MEDICINE 2011; 12:1720-6. [PMID: 22082225 DOI: 10.1111/j.1526-4637.2011.01276.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Several studies have shown that exposure to opioids for short or long periods alters pain sensitivity. Little is known about changes in pain sensitivity during and after tapering of long-term prescribed opioid treatment in chronic low-back pain (cLBP) patients. DESIGN The goal of this prospective longitudinal study was to investigate pain sensitivity in a homogeneous patient population (cLBP patients only) after tapering of long-term (17 months) opioid use and to monitor the changes in pain sensitivity for 6 months. METHODS Pain sensitivity (thermal sensation and thermal pain thresholds in low back and nondominant hand) was measured by quantitative sensory testing (QST) at 1 day before (T1), 3 weeks after (T2), and 6 months after the start of opioid tapering (T3) in 35 patients with both cLBP and opioid medication (OP), 35 opioid-naïve cLBP patients (ON), and 28 individuals with neither pain nor opioid intake (HC). RESULTS Significant differences in heat pain thresholds were found among the three groups at all three time points (T1: P=0.001, T2: P=0.015, T3: P=0.008), but not between the two patient groups. OP patients showed lower cold pain thresholds at T2 than ON patients and HC. At T3, the heat pain thresholds of OP patients still remained lower than HC (P=0.017), while those of ON patients were normalized. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest that long-term use of opioids does not reduce pain sensitivity in cLBP patients; opioid tapering may induce brief hyperalgesia that can be normalized over a longer period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haili Wang
- Department of Orthopedics, Trauma Surgery and Paraplegiology, University Hospital of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
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Wang H, Weinsheimer N, Akbar M, Schiltenwolf M. Veränderte Schmerzschwellen während und nach Opioidentzug bei Patienten mit chronischen Rückenschmerzen. Schmerz 2010; 24:257-61. [PMID: 20390305 DOI: 10.1007/s00482-010-0912-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- H Wang
- Orthopädische Universitätsklinik Heidelberg, Schlierbacher Landstr. 69118 Heidelberg.
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