New research aims to help reduce the quantity of unused prescription opioids after emergency department visits and lessen the risk of opioid misuse and overdose. The study is published in CMAJ ( Canadian Medical Association Journal ) https://www.cmaj.
ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.231640 .
Overprescribing is linked to opioid misuse and overdose, with household supplies of opioids associated with an increased risk of overdose, as many people do not dispose of unused medications safely. In Canada, more than 7500 people died of opioid overdoses in 2021, and more than 68 000 people died in the United States in 2020 from these drugs. A team from the Network of Canadian Emergency Researchers conducted a study at 7 emergency departments (6 academic tertiary care hospitals and 1 community hospital) in Quebec and Ontario to determine the ideal quantity of prescription opioids to control pain in patients discharged from emergency departments and reduce unused opioids available for misuse.
" As higher quantities of prescribed opioids are associated with higher quantities of consumed opioids, it is important to adapt opioid prescription practices to patients' analgesic needs for specific acute pain conditions while minimizing the number of unused opioid tablets that can be diverted or misused," writes Dr. Raoul Daoust, Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux (CIUSSS) du Nord-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur-de-Montréal, and the Department of F.