Treating chronic pain: the need for non-opioid options.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to evaluate whether Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement could disrupt the risk chain linking chronic pain to prescription opioid misuse.
Results Summary
The study suggests that Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement can effectively target cognitive, affective, and psychophysiological mechanisms in chronic pain, potentially reducing the risk of opioid misuse. Evidence indicates this intervention may serve as a viable non-opioid treatment option.
Population
Chronic pain patients at risk of prescription opioid misuse.
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
opioid pharmacotherapy | no change | chronic pain | chronic pain patients | - | analgesic efficacy is limited | #1 |
chronic exposure to opioids | increase | opioid misuse, addiction, and risk of overdose | - | - | can result in | #2 |
Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement | decrease | the risk chain linking chronic pain to prescription opioid misuse | - | - | can disrupt | #3 |
Chronic pain is a prevalent problem that exacts a significant toll on society. The medical system has responded to this issue by implementing pain management services centered on opioid pharmacotherapy. However, for many chronic pain patients, the analgesic efficacy of long-term opioids is limited. Moreover, chronic exposure to opioids can result in opioid misuse, addiction, and risk of overdose. As such, non-opioid treatment options are needed. This article first provides a selective review of cognitive, affective, and psychophysiological mechanisms implicated in chronic pain to be targeted by novel non-opioid treatments. Next, it briefly details one such treatment approach, Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement, and describes evidence suggesting that this intervention can disrupt the risk chain linking chronic pain to prescription opioid misuse.