Predictors of persistent opioid use after total joints

Editor's Note

Many total hip and knee patients are still taking opioid pain medication up to 6 months after surgery, finds this study.

The study identifies several predictors for persistent opioid use:

• Of patients taking opioids before surgery, 53% of total knee and 35% of total hip patients were still taking opioids at 6 months after surgery.
• Patients who were not taking opioids before surgery were less likely to report persistent opioid use at 6 months after surgery−about 8% of total knee and 4% of total hip patients.
• The strongest predictor of long-term opioid use was taking high doses of opioids before surgery−about 80% of patients continued to take opioids at 6 months after surgery.

The researchers did not find an association between persistent opioid use and persistent pain, suggesting other factors likely influence long-term opioid use after successful surgical interventions.

Goesling, Jenna; Moser, Stephanie E.; Zaidi, Bilal; Hassett, Afton L.; Hilliard, Paul; Hallstrom, Brian; Clauw, Daniel J.; Brummett, Chad M. 1. Introduction Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and total hip arthroplasty (THA) are 2 of the most common and successful surgical interventions performed annually to treat pain in the affected joint and, with the aging population, the number of arthroplasties conducted each year is projected to increase at a staggering rate.