Experts slash opioid use while improving pain scores, study finds
UVA anesthesiologists reviewed 101,484 surgeries between March 2011 and November 2015 where patients received general anesthesia. During that timeframe, the average amount of opioids given per surgery at UVA declined 37 percent. At the same time, surgical patients' self-rated average pain score on a 0-to-10 scale in a post-surgery recovery unit declined from 5.5 to 3.8 -- a 31 percent improvement. As health officials across the U.S. look for ways to combat a opioid addiction crisis , UVA researchers believe their findings highlight one way to address the problem. "There is very clear evidence that people can become opioid dependent because of the drugs they get during and after surgery," said Marcel Durieux, MD, PhD, one of three UVA anesthesiologists who conducted the study. "I think that by substantially limiting opioids during surgery, we've made an important step in addressing that problem." Keys to Improving Pain Scores Durieux points to two f...