I don’t need to quote statistics on opioid misuse disorder to set the tone for this article. That’s a good thing I guess; it must mean our overall awareness of the topic is current. When I first started talking about this topic at conferences, about 70% of my [...]
As you may know I present at conferences regularly on opioids and marijuana and their implications in the workplace. One of the statements I make during these talks applies to the need for research into the evidence of efficacy, dosage, type, etc. of medical marijuana. If you had [...]
I am not referring to discussing sensitive topics such as the upcoming inauguration or religion. Rather, I am referring to obtaining an honest and accurate drug and alcohol usage history from the injured worker, or your patient. When I was in nursing school we were taught when asking how [...]
This study backs up ongoing concerns voiced regarding the practice of pharmaceutical reps providing gifts to physicians. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/863304?nlid=105107_2981&src=wnl_dne_160517_mscpedit&uac=249582HK&impID=1099469&faf=1 Another very in-depth article on this http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2811591/ How does this relate to the Opioid Epidemic? Take a look at this article that details Purdue Pharma and their role in marketing Valium and Oxyconting: http://theweek.com/articles/541564/how-american-opiate-epidemic-started-by-pharmaceutical-company
TALKING TO PATIENTS ABOUT SENSITIVE TOPICS As the opioid epidemic and its aftermath continues to run its course, the federal government is beginning to take notice and more importantly, action. At the National Prescription Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit last week in Atlanta a surprise visitor, President Obama attended [...]
In previous segments of this post we discussed the concept of Number Needed to Treat (NNT) and which medication or combination medication had the lowest NNT. Surprisingly the medication with the lowest NNT was not an opioid. It was Ibuprofen 200 mg + acetaminophen 500 mg: The combination of these [...]
I believe if we took a poll of doctors, nurses, claims professionals, employers, and injured workers most would state their belief that opioids are stronger than other pain medications (NSAIDs or acetaminophen). Several organizations have reviewed the comparative effectiveness of oral pain medications. In part 2 of this series, I [...]
Number Needed to Treat (NNT) was a term with which I was unfamiliar. The Center for Evidence Based Medicine defines the Number Needed to Treat as the number of patients you need to treat to prevent one additional bad outcome (death, stroke, etc.). For example, if a drug has an NNT [...]
I read an article today that I am really excited about. It was written by Dr. Donald Teater, M.D. and titled, "Evidence for the efficacy of pain medications." At first I thought, "I have read a million articles like this." But I got sucked in pretty quickly as it [...]
