Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Community Healthcare - 39

TRUE OR FALSE:

The chances of getting
addicted to an opioid pain
medication are low.

FALSE. Nearly a quarter of
Americans who are prescribed opioids
for chronic pain will become addicted,
according to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention.
"The essence of the problem is
that people who take opioids often
develop a tolerance to the medication,
so they have to increase the dose,"
says Jianguo Cheng, MD, presidentelect of the American Academy of Pain
Medicine. "When the dose is increased,
adverse side effects also increase."
Those adverse effects include physical dependence, increased sensitivity
to pain, nausea, sleepiness, depression
and respiratory problems that can lead
to death.

TRUE OR FALSE:

Opioid painkillers can be
used safely.

TRUE. Despite their risks, opioid
analgesics do have a place in medicine.
"Using a relatively small dose for
a short time helps maintain function
and control acute pain so patients can
do their jobs and take care of their
families," Cheng says. "Those patients
are the ones who can benefit from
this therapy."
For example, opioids are commonly
prescribed for a specified time when
healing after surgery.

TRUE OR FALSE:

Opioid use among teenagers
is rising.

FALSE. Opioid use among teens
has ebbed and flowed over the past
several decades. Teen use rose in the

1980s, fell in the '90s and rose again in
the early 2000s. But since 2013, opioid
use among teens has dropped. Still,
Cheng encourages parents to be vigilant with teenagers and intervene when
necessary.
"Teens may gain access to opioids
through family members, peers and
others on the street," he says. "Parents
should be mindful."
Research has shown that teens usually use opioids they are prescribed,
for medical reasons, before they abuse
them through nonmedical use.

TRUE OR FALSE:

Most people who abuse opioids switch to heroin when
they can't get pills.

FALSE. Heroin is an opioid street
drug that is chemically very similar to
prescription opioids. It can even be
cheaper and easier to get in many communities. And it's true that heroin use
is almost always precipitated by prescription opioid abuse. In fact, about
80 percent of heroin users start with
opioid pain medications, according to
the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
But that doesn't mean all prescription
drug abusers will go on to use heroin.
Only about 4 percent of abusers make
that leap. ■

OPIOID
ALTERNATIVES
Recent evidence suggests that we
can more effectively prevent pain
after an operation and reduce
the use of opioid narcotics using
a combination of techniques,
says Daniel Saah, MD, chairman
of the Anesthesia department at
St. Catherine Hospital.
Saah says the hospitals of
Community Healthcare System
help patients seeking relief with
many nonopioid medications and
nonmedicinal therapies.
"Tylenol®, which contains acetaminophen, is a common and
effective pain reliever," he says.
"The IV version of acetaminophen, Ofirmev®, is prescribed to
treat moderate to severe pain and
to reduce or eliminate the need
for narcotics."
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory
drugs (NSAIDs), like Toradol,
can be given intravenously to
treat nonsurgical pain, Saah says.
This type of drug reduces pain
and inflammation. Nerve block is
commonly used for joint replacement. Injected into the nerve site,
it is effective during and after an
operation. Ketamine can be given
to induce and maintain phases of
anesthesia and reduce use of opioids during surgery.

WEBSITE

Pain Management
Specially trained physicians at the hospitals of Community Healthcare
System will assess and help you find the best method of pain control
and treatment. Visit comhs.org/find-a-doctor.

WINTE R 2017

39
http://www.comhs.org/find-a-doctor
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Community Healthcare
