A Minnespolis VA study suggests opioids are not worth their risks.
Nonopioid medications are just as good as opioid medications for treating pain and pain-related function in people with chronic back pain or pain from hip or knee osteoarthritis, according to a study published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association online March 6. In the study, researches assessed pain-related function in 240 patients at Minneapolis Veterans Affairs primary care clinics. In their conclusion, the researchers write, “Overall, opioids did not demonstrate any advantage over nonopioid medications that could potentially outweigh their greater risk of harms.”
Overdose rates jumped 30% from July 2016 – September 2017.
The latest statistics from CDC indicate that the opioid crisis in America is not abating. According to March CDC Vital Signs report, there were more than 142,000 suspected opioid overdoses among the 91 million emergency department visits across the United States captured in CDC’s National Syndromic Surveillance Program (NSSP) from July 2016 to September 2017. Data from CDC’s NSSP showed a rate increase in overdose rates of 30% on average in 52 jurisdictions in 45 states. Research shows that people who have had at least one overdose are more likely to have another.
