Healthy Habits - Acute Pain

 A new survey shows nearly nine in 10 (89%) of patients with acute pain surveyed said it disrupts their daily life.

The results show how patients’ lives are affected by acute pain:

• 70% say it limits them from walking and exercising.
• 69% says it limits their sleep.
• 65% says it affects their hobbies and leisure activities.
• 65% say it made them feel irritable or emotionally drained.
• Patients reported missing an average of 19 working days annually.

 

Pain is one of the most common reasons that people visit the doctor; however, treatment options for the various types and causes of pain remain limited. 

 

Approximately 40 million Americans with acute pain are prescribed an opioid to manage their discomfort each year. Although opioids can be effective, they also carry a labeled risk of addiction. In fact, roughly 85,000 U.S. adults are expected to develop opioid use disorder (OUD) within a year of their prescribed treatment of acute pain.

 

Health care providers may prescribe either acetaminophen or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) as alternatives for milder pain or additions to opioids for severe acute pain; while these treatments are generally well tolerated, they may have limited effectiveness, particularly for moderate-to-severe acute pain.^viii,ix  

 

The survey also shows that:

• 77% of patients say they are interested in trying a different pain medication if they experience acute pain again.
• 52% say they are seeking a new pain medication with fewer side effects than their last medication.
• 31% say they stopped taking their medication before their pain was resolved.  

In this interview, Dr. David Dalury Professor of Orthopedic Surgery (Emeritus) at the University of Maryland discusses the survey results and raises awareness about the unmet need in current pain management options and offer solutions.

 

. Interview is courtesy: Vertex Pharmaceuticals