It has been all over the news: Prescription Drug Abuse is a national epidemic in the United States. The United States makes up just 5 % of the population of the world, yet accounts for 75 % of the medication use. According to drugabuse.gov website, 2.1 million people in the United States suffer from substance use disorders related to opioid pain relievers such as hydrocodone. In fact, more than 40 Americans die every day from prescription drug overdose. What is being done about this problem that just seems to be getting worse?
The Center for Disease Control has recently reviewed their guidelines and have come up with some new guidelines for doctors to use when prescribing Opioids for chronic pain. These guidelines should be used by Doctors when prescribing opioids to patients 18 years and older, who are suffering from chronic pain. They focus on recommendations for treating chronic pain, which lasts 3 months or longer and not palliative care or end of life care. They address when it is appropriate to prescribe these medications and when they should be discontinued, and also dosing and follow up procedures. The CDC recommends prescribing non-narcotic options for pain relief before prescribing narcotics. These guidelines will help Doctors decide when it is appropriate to prescribe opioid pain medications and how to assess whether the patients they are prescribing the medications to are at risk for abuse. It also has guidelines on when to discontinue the medications and how to follow up with the patients while they are taking the prescription.
On the heels of these new guidelines, the FDA has ordered warning labels to be put on all prescription narcotic painkillers. The new labeling rules are aimed at the immediate release narcotic pain killers. The labels will information on the harmful interactions of the drug with other medicines and possible glandular or hormonal changes.
The CDC, the FDA, and Doctors are all working together with drug makers and patients to prevent abuse and also treat addiction. They are diligently researching recommendations that will keep patients safe while still providing them with effective pain relief when it is necessary.