Study: Opioids No Better Than Other Drugs for Chronic Back, Hip/Knee Pain

Mar 06, 2018 - 02:38 PM

According to a randomized trial today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, opioids are no better than non-opioid medications at treating chronic back pain or hip or knee osteoarthritis pain. The Strategies for Prescribing Analgesics Comparative Effectiveness trial compared opioid therapy with non-opioid medication therapy over 12 months for 240 primary care patients in the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System who had moderate to severe chronic back pain or hip or knee osteoarthritis pain despite analgesic use. The study found no difference in pain-related function or health-related quality of life between the group receiving opioid therapy and the group receiving non-opioid medication therapy, while pain intensity was better in the non-opioid group and adverse medication-related symptoms were more common in the opioid group.
 

Related News Articles

Chairperson's File
Chair File: Leadership Dialogue — Advancing Health and Building Trust with Lynn Hanessian and Robert Trestman, M.D.
Trust — in one another, in our field, and in our communities — is so important to what we do. Everyone should know that our hospitals and health systems are a…
Headline
FDA approves first-in-class non-opioid painkiller 
The Food and Drug Administration Jan. 30 announced it approved Journavx (suzetrigine) oral tablets, a first-in-class non-opioid drug, to treat moderate to…
Headline
AHA podcast: Englewood Health's Strategies to Combat Rising Opioid Use in Post-Pandemic America
In this conversation, Vinnidhy Dave, D.O., hospice specialist and director of palliative medicine at Englewood Health Physician Network, and Lauren Savage,…
Headline
AHA podcast: Health Equity at the Center of Rural Care
In this conversation, Terry Scoggin, CEO of Titus Regional Medical Center, discusses how the organization designed a system of care to ensure that every…
Headline
Study: Cancer treatment rates on the rise for people under 50 
A study released Dec. 9 by FAIR Health shows an increase in cancer treatment rates for people aged 18-49. The study examined treatment rates for that age group…
Headline
AHA podcast: Thinking Outside the Box to Reduce Behavioral Health Stigma and Disparities 
In this conversation, Matthew Hoag, director of integrated behavioral health at Denver Health, shares how the organization is innovating through integration to…