Perioperative Management of Patients on Buprenorphine Maintenance

Topics: Addiction | Addiction Treatment | Buprenorphine | Medical Comorbidities | Medication | Opioid epidemic | Opioid Use Disorder | Opioids | Pain | Pharmacology | Suboxone | Substance Use | Substance use disorders

CATR: Can you tell us about your background? Dr. Acampora: I used to work as a cardiac anesthesiologist. Later, my interest turned to addiction medicine, and I trained in psychiatry and addiction psychiatry. I currently work in a pain clinic where I helped develop a strategy for managing buprenorphine in the perioperative period. CATR: Where does th

A Psychosocial Intervention for Chronic Pain and SUD

Topics: Clinical practice | Marijuana | observational study | Pain | quality of life

REVIEW OF: Ilgen MA et al, JAMA Psychiatry 2020; published online July 29, 2020 Co-occurring substance use disorders (SUD) and chronic pain can be tough to treat. Little research has focused directly on this phenomenon, since most studies of pain exclude individuals with SUD. However, a few small, open studies of psychotherapeutic pain management in

Perioperative Pain Management in Opioid Use Disorder

Topics: Buprenorphine | Collaborative care | Free Articles | Methadone | Opioid Use Disorder | Opioids | Pain

When your patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) develop pain due to medical illness or trauma, pain management can get tricky. When they seek pain control, they may be perceived as “drug seeking” in medical settings. Studies have shown that providing adequate pain management for these patients is a particular challenge (Department of Veterans Affa

Kratom: A Primer

Topics: Buprenorphine | Opioids | Pain | Withdrawal

Many mental health providers are starting to hear about kratom from their patients. Consumed in Southeast Asia (except for Malaysia, where it is banned) for centuries, it’s a plant that has opioid-like qualities but is not regulated. Kratom is a tropical tree with the scientific name Mitragyna speciosa, native to Southeast Asia. Kratom is widely av

Supporting Patients With Pain and Addiction

Topics: Buprenorphine | Clinical practice | Opioid Use Disorder | Opioids | Pain

CATR: What kind of work do you do, Dr. Manhapra? Dr. Manhapra: I run a clinic at the Hampton VA Medical Center helping patients with treatment-resistant chronic pain and disability. We see patients who have trialed many pain management treatments including injections, procedures, surgeries, and psychological pain treatments, all of which have failed. T

Medical Marijuana for Chronic Pain: The Cart Before the Horse?

Topics: Clinical practice | Harm reduction | Marijuana | Pain

In 2019, 17.5% of the American population used cannabis in the past year—up from 11.0% in 2002 (www.samhsa.gov/data/release/2019-national-survey-drug-use-and-health-nsduh-releases). As more states legalize cannabis for medical or recreational use, it’s becoming more common for our patients to add medical marijuana to their medication regimen for var

Medical Cannabis for Chronic Pain and Quality of Life

Topics: Clinical practice | Marijuana | observational study | Pain | quality of life

REVIEW OF: Safakish R et al, Pain Medicine 2020 Jun 18;pnaa163. Epub ahead of print. Although chronic pain affects 10%–30% of the adult population and contributes to a host of physical and mental health problems, we often find ourselves with limited options to assist the patient with pain in front of us. While medical cannabis (MJ) has shown promis

Updated Guidelines for Treating Opioid Use Disorder

Topics: Addiction Treatment | Buprenorphine | Medication | Methadone | Opioid epidemic | Opioid Use Disorder | Pain | Pharmacology

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, America was in the grip of an opioid crisis. Now, the medical community is sounding alarms that shelter-in-place orders may have triggered drug and alcohol relapses (Silva MJ et al, Am J Manag Care 2020;26(7):1–3). The American Medical Association has noted that at least 30 states have reported increases in opioid-related

Gabapentin Misuse and Diversion

Topics: Deprescribing | gabapentin | Opioid epidemic | Opioid Use Disorder | Opioids | Pain

CATR: Could you start by telling us a little bit about yourself and your current work? Dr. Vickers-Smith: I am an epidemiologist, and my work has primarily been on gabapentin as an emerging drug of recreational and unhealthy use. This interest came about while I was working for Dr. Jennifer Havens on her cohort of about 500 individuals in central Appal

Muscle Relaxants: Sedatives Often Under the Radar

Topics: Clinical practice | Deprescribing | Opioids | Pain | Pharmacology | polypharmacy | prescribing patterns | Risk Management

Muscle relaxants are a diverse group of medications with varying mechanisms of action (see Commonly Prescribed Muscle Relaxants table below). They are indicated for short-term treatment (2–3 weeks) of acute, painful muscle spasms, as well as some chronic neurologic conditions associated with spasticity. However, many patients with chronic pain are on

Is There a Case for Cannabis in the Treatment of Pain?

Topics: Cannabidiol | Cannabis | Marijuana | Opioids | Pain | Research | Research Update

Review of: Da Vita et al, JAMA Psychiatry 2018;75(11):1118-1127 Study Type: Meta-analysis of placebo-controlled trials In the midst of the opioid epidemic, researchers are looking for new ways to treat chronic pain. Interestingly, states that have legalized medical marijuana have fewer opioid prescriptions but no clear reduction in mortality over