TBD Meeting (5371-18)

LAS VEGAS – Patients with OA pain who used opioids persistently were more likely to report worse pain interference with daily activities and more functional limitations than nonopioid users in a nationally representative survey, Drishti Shah and her colleagues reported at the annual PAINWeek.

Thinkstock/Zinkevych

“These findings suggest an unmet need and calls for better patient management, including consideration of alternative treatment strategies,” said Ms. Shah, a graduate student at West Virginia University, Morgantown.

The authors examined data from 4,172 adults with OA aged 18 years and older who took part in the nationally representative Medical Expenditure Panel Survey during 2010-2015.

Each respondent was followed for up to 2 years, with five rounds of surveys. The primary outcomes were longitudinal changes in pain interference with daily activities (PIA) as measured by the bodily pain item of the Short Form Health Survey scale and functional limitations in social, physical, work, and cognitive activities.

Opioid use was considered persistent when reported in at least two consecutive rounds and intermittent use was opioid use reported in any one or alternative rounds of the panel. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted, controlling for baseline sociodemographics, clinical characteristics, and prescription NSAID use.

Most of the patients were female (66%), and the mean age was 62 years. The majority (83%) were aged 50 years or older. About 45% were employed at baseline.

About one-third of patients reported opioid use in each round, and 25% reported prescription NSAID use. About 15% of patients reported persistent opioid use and 19% disclosed intermittent use.

At the end of follow-up, persistent opioid users were nearly three times more likely to report extreme or severe PIA when compared with nonopioid users (odds ratio, 2.91) and twice as likely to report moderate PIA (OR, 2.04). No significant differences were observed for intermittent opioid users.

Regardless of baseline functional status, persistent opioid users had a significantly higher likelihood of reporting functional limitation at end of follow-up when compared against nonopioid users. Similar results were observed for intermittent opioid users who reported no functional limitations at baseline. However, intermittent opioid users who reported functional limitation at baseline were less likely to report social and cognitive limitations at end of follow-up than were nonopioid users.

Regeneron and Teva Pharmaceuticals supported the study. Ms. Shah was a paid consultant for both companies and has no other personal financial relationships with either company.

[email protected]

LAS VEGAS – Patients with OA pain who used opioids persistently were more likely to report worse pain interference with daily activities and more functional limitations than nonopioid users in a nationally representative survey, Drishti Shah and her colleagues reported at the annual PAINWeek.

Thinkstock/Zinkevych

“These findings suggest an unmet need and calls for better patient management, including consideration of alternative treatment strategies,” said Ms. Shah, a graduate student at West Virginia University, Morgantown.

The authors examined data from 4,172 adults with OA aged 18 years and older who took part in the nationally representative Medical Expenditure Panel Survey during 2010-2015.

Each respondent was followed for up to 2 years, with five rounds of surveys. The primary outcomes were longitudinal changes in pain interference with daily activities (PIA) as measured by the bodily pain item of the Short Form Health Survey scale and functional limitations in social, physical, work, and cognitive activities.

Opioid use was considered persistent when reported in at least two consecutive rounds and intermittent use was opioid use reported in any one or alternative rounds of the panel. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted, controlling for baseline sociodemographics, clinical characteristics, and prescription NSAID use.

Most of the patients were female (66%), and the mean age was 62 years. The majority (83%) were aged 50 years or older. About 45% were employed at baseline.

About one-third of patients reported opioid use in each round, and 25% reported prescription NSAID use. About 15% of patients reported persistent opioid use and 19% disclosed intermittent use.

At the end of follow-up, persistent opioid users were nearly three times more likely to report extreme or severe PIA when compared with nonopioid users (odds ratio, 2.91) and twice as likely to report moderate PIA (OR, 2.04). No significant differences were observed for intermittent opioid users.

Regardless of baseline functional status, persistent opioid users had a significantly higher likelihood of reporting functional limitation at end of follow-up when compared against nonopioid users. Similar results were observed for intermittent opioid users who reported no functional limitations at baseline. However, intermittent opioid users who reported functional limitation at baseline were less likely to report social and cognitive limitations at end of follow-up than were nonopioid users.

Regeneron and Teva Pharmaceuticals supported the study. Ms. Shah was a paid consultant for both companies and has no other personal financial relationships with either company.

[email protected]

LAS VEGAS – Patients with OA pain who used opioids persistently were more likely to report worse pain interference with daily activities and more functional limitations than nonopioid users in a nationally representative survey, Drishti Shah and her colleagues reported at the annual PAINWeek.

Thinkstock/Zinkevych

“These findings suggest an unmet need and calls for better patient management, including consideration of alternative treatment strategies,” said Ms. Shah, a graduate student at West Virginia University, Morgantown.

The authors examined data from 4,172 adults with OA aged 18 years and older who took part in the nationally representative Medical Expenditure Panel Survey during 2010-2015.

Each respondent was followed for up to 2 years, with five rounds of surveys. The primary outcomes were longitudinal changes in pain interference with daily activities (PIA) as measured by the bodily pain item of the Short Form Health Survey scale and functional limitations in social, physical, work, and cognitive activities.

Opioid use was considered persistent when reported in at least two consecutive rounds and intermittent use was opioid use reported in any one or alternative rounds of the panel. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted, controlling for baseline sociodemographics, clinical characteristics, and prescription NSAID use.

Most of the patients were female (66%), and the mean age was 62 years. The majority (83%) were aged 50 years or older. About 45% were employed at baseline.

About one-third of patients reported opioid use in each round, and 25% reported prescription NSAID use. About 15% of patients reported persistent opioid use and 19% disclosed intermittent use.

At the end of follow-up, persistent opioid users were nearly three times more likely to report extreme or severe PIA when compared with nonopioid users (odds ratio, 2.91) and twice as likely to report moderate PIA (OR, 2.04). No significant differences were observed for intermittent opioid users.

Regardless of baseline functional status, persistent opioid users had a significantly higher likelihood of reporting functional limitation at end of follow-up when compared against nonopioid users. Similar results were observed for intermittent opioid users who reported no functional limitations at baseline. However, intermittent opioid users who reported functional limitation at baseline were less likely to report social and cognitive limitations at end of follow-up than were nonopioid users.

Regeneron and Teva Pharmaceuticals supported the study. Ms. Shah was a paid consultant for both companies and has no other personal financial relationships with either company.

[email protected]

LAS VEGAS – Up to 22% of opioid abusers also abuse gabapentin, taking high doses of the antiepileptic for its psychoactive effects, or to potentiate the effect of opioids.

ah_designs/Getty Images

The drug – the 10th most commonly prescribed in the United States – is increasingly implicated in overdose deaths. In response, several states have recently reclassified the antiepileptic as a Schedule V controlled substance. Other states have declined to go that far, but have added gabapentin (Neurontin and others) to the drugs that must be reported to state prescription monitoring programs.

“Gabapentin and pregabalin [Lyrica] are versatile and important drugs that are widely prescribed and used off label for a number of conditions from seizure disorder to fibromyalgia,” said Joseph Pergolizzi Jr., MD, who discussed the issue during the annual PAINWeek. “Abuse patterns differ somewhat from abuse patterns with prescription opioids. People who misuse gabapentinoids tend to already use other drugs inappropriately. It’s rare to find a person who only takes them recreationally, but it is increasingly common to find polydrug abusers who take gabapentinoids.”

Gabapentin abuse appears to be more common in Europe than in the United States, where it’s just beginning to emerge, Dr. Pergolizzi said. And the picture is more nuanced than it might first appear: Many of those who are misusing the drug are using it as a “do-it-yourself” opioid withdrawal aid, he said in an interview.

At the meeting, he presented a literature review comprising 46 papers on pregabalin abuse and 263 on gabapentin abuse. Several important themes arose from these papers, said Dr. Pergolizzi, cofounder and chief operating officer of NEMA Research Inc., Naples, Fla.:

• Gabapentin and pregabalin are being prescribed off label for numerous conditions, including bipolar disorder, neuropathic pain, diabetic neuropathy, complex regional pain syndrome, attention deficit disorder, restless leg syndrome, trigeminal neuralgia, periodic limb movement disorder of sleep, migraine, drug and alcohol withdrawal seizures, chronic low back pain, and even menopausal symptoms.
• About a one-third of users experience withdrawal symptoms with sudden discontinuation. Symptoms include disorientation, anxiety, insomnia, heart palpitations, diaphoresis, and abdominal cramps.
• Risk factors for abuse are emerging. These include opioid use disorders, mental illnesses, and a history of taking supratherapeutic doses of the drugs. Age and sex don’t seem to be a consistent risk factor for abuse.
• Abusers can obtain nonprescription gabapentinoids more easily each year, including street sales and online orders, Dr. Pergolizzi said. “A Google search conducted in July for ‘buy gabapentin without a prescription’ yielded 4.48 million results and ‘buy pregabalin without a prescription,’ 622,000. A similar search conducted in September 2017 yielded 1.19 million and 352,000 results, respectively.”
• Few urine drug assays screen for gabapentinoids, which makes them easy to conceal in random drug testing.

Reports of gabapentin-involved drug overdoses and even deaths have recently emerged in the United States, particularly in the opioid abuse-plagued Appalachian states. An article in May in Drug and Alcohol Dependence examined the prevalence of gabapentin in postmortem toxicology in drug overdose deaths in four Appalachian states in 2015 (Drug Alcohol Depend. 2018;186:80-5). Rates were 4% in eastern Tennessee, 15% in West Virginia, 20% in North Carolina, and 41% in Kentucky.

Three states have now added gabapentin to their list of Schedule V controlled substances: Kentucky in 2017, West Virginia this May, and Tennessee in July.

Ohio, Minnesota, Virginia, and Massachusetts have taken a different tack to controlling dispensing. In those states, all pharmacies, prescribers, and wholesalers must report all dispensing and sales of gabapentin to their prescription monitoring databases.

Dr. Pergolizzi disclosed financial relationships with numerous pharmaceutical companies.

[email protected]

SOURCE: Pergolizzi J et al. PAINWeek 2018, Poster 55.

LAS VEGAS – Up to 22% of opioid abusers also abuse gabapentin, taking high doses of the antiepileptic for its psychoactive effects, or to potentiate the effect of opioids.

ah_designs/Getty Images

The drug – the 10th most commonly prescribed in the United States – is increasingly implicated in overdose deaths. In response, several states have recently reclassified the antiepileptic as a Schedule V controlled substance. Other states have declined to go that far, but have added gabapentin (Neurontin and others) to the drugs that must be reported to state prescription monitoring programs.

“Gabapentin and pregabalin [Lyrica] are versatile and important drugs that are widely prescribed and used off label for a number of conditions from seizure disorder to fibromyalgia,” said Joseph Pergolizzi Jr., MD, who discussed the issue during the annual PAINWeek. “Abuse patterns differ somewhat from abuse patterns with prescription opioids. People who misuse gabapentinoids tend to already use other drugs inappropriately. It’s rare to find a person who only takes them recreationally, but it is increasingly common to find polydrug abusers who take gabapentinoids.”

Gabapentin abuse appears to be more common in Europe than in the United States, where it’s just beginning to emerge, Dr. Pergolizzi said. And the picture is more nuanced than it might first appear: Many of those who are misusing the drug are using it as a “do-it-yourself” opioid withdrawal aid, he said in an interview.

At the meeting, he presented a literature review comprising 46 papers on pregabalin abuse and 263 on gabapentin abuse. Several important themes arose from these papers, said Dr. Pergolizzi, cofounder and chief operating officer of NEMA Research Inc., Naples, Fla.:

• Gabapentin and pregabalin are being prescribed off label for numerous conditions, including bipolar disorder, neuropathic pain, diabetic neuropathy, complex regional pain syndrome, attention deficit disorder, restless leg syndrome, trigeminal neuralgia, periodic limb movement disorder of sleep, migraine, drug and alcohol withdrawal seizures, chronic low back pain, and even menopausal symptoms.
• About a one-third of users experience withdrawal symptoms with sudden discontinuation. Symptoms include disorientation, anxiety, insomnia, heart palpitations, diaphoresis, and abdominal cramps.
• Risk factors for abuse are emerging. These include opioid use disorders, mental illnesses, and a history of taking supratherapeutic doses of the drugs. Age and sex don’t seem to be a consistent risk factor for abuse.
• Abusers can obtain nonprescription gabapentinoids more easily each year, including street sales and online orders, Dr. Pergolizzi said. “A Google search conducted in July for ‘buy gabapentin without a prescription’ yielded 4.48 million results and ‘buy pregabalin without a prescription,’ 622,000. A similar search conducted in September 2017 yielded 1.19 million and 352,000 results, respectively.”
• Few urine drug assays screen for gabapentinoids, which makes them easy to conceal in random drug testing.

Reports of gabapentin-involved drug overdoses and even deaths have recently emerged in the United States, particularly in the opioid abuse-plagued Appalachian states. An article in May in Drug and Alcohol Dependence examined the prevalence of gabapentin in postmortem toxicology in drug overdose deaths in four Appalachian states in 2015 (Drug Alcohol Depend. 2018;186:80-5). Rates were 4% in eastern Tennessee, 15% in West Virginia, 20% in North Carolina, and 41% in Kentucky.

Three states have now added gabapentin to their list of Schedule V controlled substances: Kentucky in 2017, West Virginia this May, and Tennessee in July.

Ohio, Minnesota, Virginia, and Massachusetts have taken a different tack to controlling dispensing. In those states, all pharmacies, prescribers, and wholesalers must report all dispensing and sales of gabapentin to their prescription monitoring databases.

Dr. Pergolizzi disclosed financial relationships with numerous pharmaceutical companies.

[email protected]

SOURCE: Pergolizzi J et al. PAINWeek 2018, Poster 55.

LAS VEGAS – Up to 22% of opioid abusers also abuse gabapentin, taking high doses of the antiepileptic for its psychoactive effects, or to potentiate the effect of opioids.

ah_designs/Getty Images

The drug – the 10th most commonly prescribed in the United States – is increasingly implicated in overdose deaths. In response, several states have recently reclassified the antiepileptic as a Schedule V controlled substance. Other states have declined to go that far, but have added gabapentin (Neurontin and others) to the drugs that must be reported to state prescription monitoring programs.

“Gabapentin and pregabalin [Lyrica] are versatile and important drugs that are widely prescribed and used off label for a number of conditions from seizure disorder to fibromyalgia,” said Joseph Pergolizzi Jr., MD, who discussed the issue during the annual PAINWeek. “Abuse patterns differ somewhat from abuse patterns with prescription opioids. People who misuse gabapentinoids tend to already use other drugs inappropriately. It’s rare to find a person who only takes them recreationally, but it is increasingly common to find polydrug abusers who take gabapentinoids.”

Gabapentin abuse appears to be more common in Europe than in the United States, where it’s just beginning to emerge, Dr. Pergolizzi said. And the picture is more nuanced than it might first appear: Many of those who are misusing the drug are using it as a “do-it-yourself” opioid withdrawal aid, he said in an interview.

At the meeting, he presented a literature review comprising 46 papers on pregabalin abuse and 263 on gabapentin abuse. Several important themes arose from these papers, said Dr. Pergolizzi, cofounder and chief operating officer of NEMA Research Inc., Naples, Fla.:

• Gabapentin and pregabalin are being prescribed off label for numerous conditions, including bipolar disorder, neuropathic pain, diabetic neuropathy, complex regional pain syndrome, attention deficit disorder, restless leg syndrome, trigeminal neuralgia, periodic limb movement disorder of sleep, migraine, drug and alcohol withdrawal seizures, chronic low back pain, and even menopausal symptoms.
• About a one-third of users experience withdrawal symptoms with sudden discontinuation. Symptoms include disorientation, anxiety, insomnia, heart palpitations, diaphoresis, and abdominal cramps.
• Risk factors for abuse are emerging. These include opioid use disorders, mental illnesses, and a history of taking supratherapeutic doses of the drugs. Age and sex don’t seem to be a consistent risk factor for abuse.
• Abusers can obtain nonprescription gabapentinoids more easily each year, including street sales and online orders, Dr. Pergolizzi said. “A Google search conducted in July for ‘buy gabapentin without a prescription’ yielded 4.48 million results and ‘buy pregabalin without a prescription,’ 622,000. A similar search conducted in September 2017 yielded 1.19 million and 352,000 results, respectively.”
• Few urine drug assays screen for gabapentinoids, which makes them easy to conceal in random drug testing.

Reports of gabapentin-involved drug overdoses and even deaths have recently emerged in the United States, particularly in the opioid abuse-plagued Appalachian states. An article in May in Drug and Alcohol Dependence examined the prevalence of gabapentin in postmortem toxicology in drug overdose deaths in four Appalachian states in 2015 (Drug Alcohol Depend. 2018;186:80-5). Rates were 4% in eastern Tennessee, 15% in West Virginia, 20% in North Carolina, and 41% in Kentucky.

Three states have now added gabapentin to their list of Schedule V controlled substances: Kentucky in 2017, West Virginia this May, and Tennessee in July.

Ohio, Minnesota, Virginia, and Massachusetts have taken a different tack to controlling dispensing. In those states, all pharmacies, prescribers, and wholesalers must report all dispensing and sales of gabapentin to their prescription monitoring databases.

Dr. Pergolizzi disclosed financial relationships with numerous pharmaceutical companies.

[email protected]

SOURCE: Pergolizzi J et al. PAINWeek 2018, Poster 55.

LAS VEGAS – Naldemedine, a peripherally active mu-opioid receptor blocker, significantly relieved the symptoms of opioid-induced constipation in patients with chronic, noncancer pain over 12 weeks, and it appears just as effective when used for 52 weeks.

stockdevil/iStock/Getty Images Plus

In three placebo-controlled randomized studies, the drug increased the number of spontaneous bowel movements and improved stool consistency without inducing opioid withdrawal symptoms.

Naldemedine (Symproic) received FDA approval last year based on COMPOSE 1 and COMPOSE 2, which were published in Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology last year (2017 Aug 2[8]:555-64). James E. Wild, MD, of Upstate Clinical Research Associates, in Williamsville, N.Y., reported these in a poster presented at the annual PAINWeek.

The year-long COMPOSE 3 trial was not presented at the meeting, but appeared in the journal Pain (2018 May;5:987-94).

Opioids not only affect the central nervous system but also bind to mu-opioid receptors in the gut, decreasing intestinal motility. Naldemedine blocks these receptors from opioid binding but cannot cross the blood-brain barrier. Its peripheral action blocks gut opioid binding, side-stepping the motility problem without inducing any opioid withdrawal symptoms.

COMPOSE 1 (C1) and COMPOSE 2 (C2) comprised a total of 1,095 subjects with chronic, noncancer pain. They were randomized to either naldemedine 0.2 mg daily or placebo for 12 weeks.

Patients were a median of 53 years with a mean opioid use of 61 months. About 60% had a mean daily morphine equivalent of 30-100 mg, and 40% a mean dose of more than 100 mg. At baseline, they had a mean of one spontaneous bowel movement (BM) per week, with a mean of 0.4 deemed “complete.” All the BMs were accompanied by straining.

Response was defined as a patient who had at least three spontaneous BMs per week and an increase of at least one for that week, for at least 9 of the 12 treatment weeks and at least 3 of the last 4 weeks of the trial.

In both studies, the responder rate was significantly higher in the naldemedine group than in the placebo group (C1 48% vs. 34%; C2 53% vs. 33%). Those taking naldemedine had a mean of two more spontaneous BMs per week than did those taking placebo, and significantly more of those were accomplished without straining.

The most common treatment-emergent adverse effects were diarrhea (about 8% vs. 3%) and abdominal pain (about 6% vs. 1%).

Three patients in C1 experienced at least one event of opioid withdrawal (two taking the study drug and one taking placebo). There were no confirmed withdrawal events in C2, but seven patients (five taking the study drug and two taking placebo) experienced possible gastrointestinal withdrawal symptoms.

COMPOSE 3 demonstrated naldemedine’s lasting benefit in this population. It randomized 1,246 patients to 52 weeks of placebo or the 0.2 mg/day dose. Patient demographics were similar to the earlier COMPOSE studies.

The primary endpoint was treatment-emergent adverse events. Additional endpoints included opioid withdrawal, pain intensity, frequency of bowel movements, and constipation-related symptoms.

There was a significant and sustained increase from baseline in the frequency of bowel movements with naldemedine, increasing from about two to four each week. Constipation symptoms and quality of life scores both improved significantly, relative to placebo.

Again, the most common adverse event was diarrhea (11% naldemedine vs. 5% placebo). The drug was not associated with any opioid withdrawal symptoms, nor did it interfere with a patient’s pain control.
 

[email protected]

SOURCE: Wild JE et al. PAINWeek 2018, Abstract 34

LAS VEGAS – Naldemedine, a peripherally active mu-opioid receptor blocker, significantly relieved the symptoms of opioid-induced constipation in patients with chronic, noncancer pain over 12 weeks, and it appears just as effective when used for 52 weeks.

stockdevil/iStock/Getty Images Plus

In three placebo-controlled randomized studies, the drug increased the number of spontaneous bowel movements and improved stool consistency without inducing opioid withdrawal symptoms.

Naldemedine (Symproic) received FDA approval last year based on COMPOSE 1 and COMPOSE 2, which were published in Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology last year (2017 Aug 2[8]:555-64). James E. Wild, MD, of Upstate Clinical Research Associates, in Williamsville, N.Y., reported these in a poster presented at the annual PAINWeek.

The year-long COMPOSE 3 trial was not presented at the meeting, but appeared in the journal Pain (2018 May;5:987-94).

Opioids not only affect the central nervous system but also bind to mu-opioid receptors in the gut, decreasing intestinal motility. Naldemedine blocks these receptors from opioid binding but cannot cross the blood-brain barrier. Its peripheral action blocks gut opioid binding, side-stepping the motility problem without inducing any opioid withdrawal symptoms.

COMPOSE 1 (C1) and COMPOSE 2 (C2) comprised a total of 1,095 subjects with chronic, noncancer pain. They were randomized to either naldemedine 0.2 mg daily or placebo for 12 weeks.

Patients were a median of 53 years with a mean opioid use of 61 months. About 60% had a mean daily morphine equivalent of 30-100 mg, and 40% a mean dose of more than 100 mg. At baseline, they had a mean of one spontaneous bowel movement (BM) per week, with a mean of 0.4 deemed “complete.” All the BMs were accompanied by straining.

Response was defined as a patient who had at least three spontaneous BMs per week and an increase of at least one for that week, for at least 9 of the 12 treatment weeks and at least 3 of the last 4 weeks of the trial.

In both studies, the responder rate was significantly higher in the naldemedine group than in the placebo group (C1 48% vs. 34%; C2 53% vs. 33%). Those taking naldemedine had a mean of two more spontaneous BMs per week than did those taking placebo, and significantly more of those were accomplished without straining.

The most common treatment-emergent adverse effects were diarrhea (about 8% vs. 3%) and abdominal pain (about 6% vs. 1%).

Three patients in C1 experienced at least one event of opioid withdrawal (two taking the study drug and one taking placebo). There were no confirmed withdrawal events in C2, but seven patients (five taking the study drug and two taking placebo) experienced possible gastrointestinal withdrawal symptoms.

COMPOSE 3 demonstrated naldemedine’s lasting benefit in this population. It randomized 1,246 patients to 52 weeks of placebo or the 0.2 mg/day dose. Patient demographics were similar to the earlier COMPOSE studies.

The primary endpoint was treatment-emergent adverse events. Additional endpoints included opioid withdrawal, pain intensity, frequency of bowel movements, and constipation-related symptoms.

There was a significant and sustained increase from baseline in the frequency of bowel movements with naldemedine, increasing from about two to four each week. Constipation symptoms and quality of life scores both improved significantly, relative to placebo.

Again, the most common adverse event was diarrhea (11% naldemedine vs. 5% placebo). The drug was not associated with any opioid withdrawal symptoms, nor did it interfere with a patient’s pain control.
 

[email protected]

SOURCE: Wild JE et al. PAINWeek 2018, Abstract 34

LAS VEGAS – Naldemedine, a peripherally active mu-opioid receptor blocker, significantly relieved the symptoms of opioid-induced constipation in patients with chronic, noncancer pain over 12 weeks, and it appears just as effective when used for 52 weeks.

stockdevil/iStock/Getty Images Plus

In three placebo-controlled randomized studies, the drug increased the number of spontaneous bowel movements and improved stool consistency without inducing opioid withdrawal symptoms.

Naldemedine (Symproic) received FDA approval last year based on COMPOSE 1 and COMPOSE 2, which were published in Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology last year (2017 Aug 2[8]:555-64). James E. Wild, MD, of Upstate Clinical Research Associates, in Williamsville, N.Y., reported these in a poster presented at the annual PAINWeek.

The year-long COMPOSE 3 trial was not presented at the meeting, but appeared in the journal Pain (2018 May;5:987-94).

Opioids not only affect the central nervous system but also bind to mu-opioid receptors in the gut, decreasing intestinal motility. Naldemedine blocks these receptors from opioid binding but cannot cross the blood-brain barrier. Its peripheral action blocks gut opioid binding, side-stepping the motility problem without inducing any opioid withdrawal symptoms.

COMPOSE 1 (C1) and COMPOSE 2 (C2) comprised a total of 1,095 subjects with chronic, noncancer pain. They were randomized to either naldemedine 0.2 mg daily or placebo for 12 weeks.

Patients were a median of 53 years with a mean opioid use of 61 months. About 60% had a mean daily morphine equivalent of 30-100 mg, and 40% a mean dose of more than 100 mg. At baseline, they had a mean of one spontaneous bowel movement (BM) per week, with a mean of 0.4 deemed “complete.” All the BMs were accompanied by straining.

Response was defined as a patient who had at least three spontaneous BMs per week and an increase of at least one for that week, for at least 9 of the 12 treatment weeks and at least 3 of the last 4 weeks of the trial.

In both studies, the responder rate was significantly higher in the naldemedine group than in the placebo group (C1 48% vs. 34%; C2 53% vs. 33%). Those taking naldemedine had a mean of two more spontaneous BMs per week than did those taking placebo, and significantly more of those were accomplished without straining.

The most common treatment-emergent adverse effects were diarrhea (about 8% vs. 3%) and abdominal pain (about 6% vs. 1%).

Three patients in C1 experienced at least one event of opioid withdrawal (two taking the study drug and one taking placebo). There were no confirmed withdrawal events in C2, but seven patients (five taking the study drug and two taking placebo) experienced possible gastrointestinal withdrawal symptoms.

COMPOSE 3 demonstrated naldemedine’s lasting benefit in this population. It randomized 1,246 patients to 52 weeks of placebo or the 0.2 mg/day dose. Patient demographics were similar to the earlier COMPOSE studies.

The primary endpoint was treatment-emergent adverse events. Additional endpoints included opioid withdrawal, pain intensity, frequency of bowel movements, and constipation-related symptoms.

There was a significant and sustained increase from baseline in the frequency of bowel movements with naldemedine, increasing from about two to four each week. Constipation symptoms and quality of life scores both improved significantly, relative to placebo.

Again, the most common adverse event was diarrhea (11% naldemedine vs. 5% placebo). The drug was not associated with any opioid withdrawal symptoms, nor did it interfere with a patient’s pain control.
 

[email protected]

SOURCE: Wild JE et al. PAINWeek 2018, Abstract 34

LAS VEGAS – Ketamine infusions are a reasonable option for patients with central sensitization pain syndromes, Jay Joshi, MD, said at the annual PAINWeek.

This disparate group of disorders includes pain experienced by both the body and mind: anxiety and depression, complex regional pain syndrome, opioid-induced hyperalgesia, phantom limb pain, fibromyalgia, and PTSD. In trained hands, ketamine infusions can benefit all of them, often providing the first relief for patients frustrated by years of seeking help for a medical disorder that has no obvious physical cause, said Dr. Joshi, CEO and medical director of the National Pain Centers in Vernon Hills, Ill.

Central sensitization is a CNS response to pain, often chronic, that results in increased neural activity or an increased response to stimuli that wouldn’t normally be interpreted as pain. The root causes can be peripheral injury, persistent inflammation, or neural injury.

“Central sensitization is produced by increases in excitability and reduction in inhibitory transmission, which may produce a persistent enhancement of pain sensitivity,” Dr. Joshi said. These changes include increased glutaminergic signaling – the target of ketamine’s action as an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor blocker.

By blocking glutamate reuptake and increasing it in the synapse, ketamine “resets the hyperalgesia hyperexcitatory pathway that’s been stuck in this ‘on’ position,” Dr. Joshi said in an interview. “As a selective NMDA receptor antagonist, ketamine seems to be binding to a subreceptor that’s responsible for the symptoms that patients with these syndromes experience. Other NMDA receptor antagonists don’t give the same results. By turning off the signal, we’re giving the nervous system a chance to reset” and return to a more normally functioning state.

“Even though these people have had an injury and aren’t functioning normally, they still have normal neural pathways that can perceive sensation correctly,” he added.

Ketamine is only approved as an injectable anesthetic, but has been gaining popularity as a treatment for depression and other psychiatric disorders, as well as pain. Reports have been so positive that the Food and Drug Administration is considering approval of a ketamine-based nasal spray – esketamine – that’s being developed by Johnson & Johnson. The company reported positive phase 3 data during the May meeting of the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology.

When paired with an oral antidepressant, and compared with a placebo spray, esketamine significantly increased the number of responders and remitters and decreased relapses. Based on these results, and three other positive phase 3 studies, Johnson & Johnson submitted for FDA approval in September 2018.

Anecdotal reports of significant relief of chronic pain associated with ketamine have made pain another attractive off-label use, despite a paucity of high-quality data. In July 2018, a consortium of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, the American Academy of Pain Medicine, and the American Society of Anesthesiologists published evidence-based guidelines for the drug’s use in chronic pain (Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2018 Jul;43[5]:521-46). Overall, the panel found weak evidence supporting its use for most conditions, except for moderate evidence for complex regional pain syndrome.

• Spinal cord injury pain: Weak evidence for short-term benefit at doses of 0.42-0.4 mg/kg per hour ranging from 17 minutes to 5 hours for 7 consecutive days.
• Complex regional pain syndrome: Moderate evidence for pain improvement up to 12 weeks at doses of 22 mg/hour for 4 days or 0.35 mg/kg per hour over 4 hours daily for 10 days.
• Mixed neuropathic pain, phantom limb pain, postherpetic neuralgia, fibromyalgia, cancer pain, ischemic pain, migraine headache, and low-back pain: weak to no evidence.

Nevertheless, Dr. Joshi is a firm believer in ketamine’s benefit for pain patients, when it’s administered at appropriate doses by clinicians trained in anesthesia. “Our main clinic is in a surgical center and we administer ketamine under a surgical protocol. This is a powerful anesthetic and should be treated as such,” he said. Patients are risk-stratified with the Anesthesiology Society of America physical status classification system and constantly monitored during the infusions.

These kinds of precautions are not generally taken in the dozens of unregulated “ketamine clinics” continue to open across the country, Dr. Joshi said. “They’re typically not staffed by anesthesiologists or nurse anesthetists, but by other providers without adequate training who may have only taken a weekend or online course in how to administer the drug.”

Dr. Joshi reported no disclosures relevant to his presentation.

[email protected]

LAS VEGAS – Ketamine infusions are a reasonable option for patients with central sensitization pain syndromes, Jay Joshi, MD, said at the annual PAINWeek.

This disparate group of disorders includes pain experienced by both the body and mind: anxiety and depression, complex regional pain syndrome, opioid-induced hyperalgesia, phantom limb pain, fibromyalgia, and PTSD. In trained hands, ketamine infusions can benefit all of them, often providing the first relief for patients frustrated by years of seeking help for a medical disorder that has no obvious physical cause, said Dr. Joshi, CEO and medical director of the National Pain Centers in Vernon Hills, Ill.

Central sensitization is a CNS response to pain, often chronic, that results in increased neural activity or an increased response to stimuli that wouldn’t normally be interpreted as pain. The root causes can be peripheral injury, persistent inflammation, or neural injury.

“Central sensitization is produced by increases in excitability and reduction in inhibitory transmission, which may produce a persistent enhancement of pain sensitivity,” Dr. Joshi said. These changes include increased glutaminergic signaling – the target of ketamine’s action as an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor blocker.

By blocking glutamate reuptake and increasing it in the synapse, ketamine “resets the hyperalgesia hyperexcitatory pathway that’s been stuck in this ‘on’ position,” Dr. Joshi said in an interview. “As a selective NMDA receptor antagonist, ketamine seems to be binding to a subreceptor that’s responsible for the symptoms that patients with these syndromes experience. Other NMDA receptor antagonists don’t give the same results. By turning off the signal, we’re giving the nervous system a chance to reset” and return to a more normally functioning state.

“Even though these people have had an injury and aren’t functioning normally, they still have normal neural pathways that can perceive sensation correctly,” he added.

Ketamine is only approved as an injectable anesthetic, but has been gaining popularity as a treatment for depression and other psychiatric disorders, as well as pain. Reports have been so positive that the Food and Drug Administration is considering approval of a ketamine-based nasal spray – esketamine – that’s being developed by Johnson & Johnson. The company reported positive phase 3 data during the May meeting of the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology.

When paired with an oral antidepressant, and compared with a placebo spray, esketamine significantly increased the number of responders and remitters and decreased relapses. Based on these results, and three other positive phase 3 studies, Johnson & Johnson submitted for FDA approval in September 2018.

Anecdotal reports of significant relief of chronic pain associated with ketamine have made pain another attractive off-label use, despite a paucity of high-quality data. In July 2018, a consortium of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, the American Academy of Pain Medicine, and the American Society of Anesthesiologists published evidence-based guidelines for the drug’s use in chronic pain (Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2018 Jul;43[5]:521-46). Overall, the panel found weak evidence supporting its use for most conditions, except for moderate evidence for complex regional pain syndrome.

• Spinal cord injury pain: Weak evidence for short-term benefit at doses of 0.42-0.4 mg/kg per hour ranging from 17 minutes to 5 hours for 7 consecutive days.
• Complex regional pain syndrome: Moderate evidence for pain improvement up to 12 weeks at doses of 22 mg/hour for 4 days or 0.35 mg/kg per hour over 4 hours daily for 10 days.
• Mixed neuropathic pain, phantom limb pain, postherpetic neuralgia, fibromyalgia, cancer pain, ischemic pain, migraine headache, and low-back pain: weak to no evidence.

Nevertheless, Dr. Joshi is a firm believer in ketamine’s benefit for pain patients, when it’s administered at appropriate doses by clinicians trained in anesthesia. “Our main clinic is in a surgical center and we administer ketamine under a surgical protocol. This is a powerful anesthetic and should be treated as such,” he said. Patients are risk-stratified with the Anesthesiology Society of America physical status classification system and constantly monitored during the infusions.

These kinds of precautions are not generally taken in the dozens of unregulated “ketamine clinics” continue to open across the country, Dr. Joshi said. “They’re typically not staffed by anesthesiologists or nurse anesthetists, but by other providers without adequate training who may have only taken a weekend or online course in how to administer the drug.”

Dr. Joshi reported no disclosures relevant to his presentation.

[email protected]

LAS VEGAS – Ketamine infusions are a reasonable option for patients with central sensitization pain syndromes, Jay Joshi, MD, said at the annual PAINWeek.

This disparate group of disorders includes pain experienced by both the body and mind: anxiety and depression, complex regional pain syndrome, opioid-induced hyperalgesia, phantom limb pain, fibromyalgia, and PTSD. In trained hands, ketamine infusions can benefit all of them, often providing the first relief for patients frustrated by years of seeking help for a medical disorder that has no obvious physical cause, said Dr. Joshi, CEO and medical director of the National Pain Centers in Vernon Hills, Ill.

Central sensitization is a CNS response to pain, often chronic, that results in increased neural activity or an increased response to stimuli that wouldn’t normally be interpreted as pain. The root causes can be peripheral injury, persistent inflammation, or neural injury.

“Central sensitization is produced by increases in excitability and reduction in inhibitory transmission, which may produce a persistent enhancement of pain sensitivity,” Dr. Joshi said. These changes include increased glutaminergic signaling – the target of ketamine’s action as an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor blocker.

By blocking glutamate reuptake and increasing it in the synapse, ketamine “resets the hyperalgesia hyperexcitatory pathway that’s been stuck in this ‘on’ position,” Dr. Joshi said in an interview. “As a selective NMDA receptor antagonist, ketamine seems to be binding to a subreceptor that’s responsible for the symptoms that patients with these syndromes experience. Other NMDA receptor antagonists don’t give the same results. By turning off the signal, we’re giving the nervous system a chance to reset” and return to a more normally functioning state.

“Even though these people have had an injury and aren’t functioning normally, they still have normal neural pathways that can perceive sensation correctly,” he added.

Ketamine is only approved as an injectable anesthetic, but has been gaining popularity as a treatment for depression and other psychiatric disorders, as well as pain. Reports have been so positive that the Food and Drug Administration is considering approval of a ketamine-based nasal spray – esketamine – that’s being developed by Johnson & Johnson. The company reported positive phase 3 data during the May meeting of the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology.

When paired with an oral antidepressant, and compared with a placebo spray, esketamine significantly increased the number of responders and remitters and decreased relapses. Based on these results, and three other positive phase 3 studies, Johnson & Johnson submitted for FDA approval in September 2018.

Anecdotal reports of significant relief of chronic pain associated with ketamine have made pain another attractive off-label use, despite a paucity of high-quality data. In July 2018, a consortium of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, the American Academy of Pain Medicine, and the American Society of Anesthesiologists published evidence-based guidelines for the drug’s use in chronic pain (Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2018 Jul;43[5]:521-46). Overall, the panel found weak evidence supporting its use for most conditions, except for moderate evidence for complex regional pain syndrome.

• Spinal cord injury pain: Weak evidence for short-term benefit at doses of 0.42-0.4 mg/kg per hour ranging from 17 minutes to 5 hours for 7 consecutive days.
• Complex regional pain syndrome: Moderate evidence for pain improvement up to 12 weeks at doses of 22 mg/hour for 4 days or 0.35 mg/kg per hour over 4 hours daily for 10 days.
• Mixed neuropathic pain, phantom limb pain, postherpetic neuralgia, fibromyalgia, cancer pain, ischemic pain, migraine headache, and low-back pain: weak to no evidence.

Nevertheless, Dr. Joshi is a firm believer in ketamine’s benefit for pain patients, when it’s administered at appropriate doses by clinicians trained in anesthesia. “Our main clinic is in a surgical center and we administer ketamine under a surgical protocol. This is a powerful anesthetic and should be treated as such,” he said. Patients are risk-stratified with the Anesthesiology Society of America physical status classification system and constantly monitored during the infusions.

These kinds of precautions are not generally taken in the dozens of unregulated “ketamine clinics” continue to open across the country, Dr. Joshi said. “They’re typically not staffed by anesthesiologists or nurse anesthetists, but by other providers without adequate training who may have only taken a weekend or online course in how to administer the drug.”

Dr. Joshi reported no disclosures relevant to his presentation.

[email protected]

LAS VEGAS – More than half of patients tested for prescription drug compliance last year misused their medications, often supplementing them with nonprescribed and illicit drugs in dangerous combinations.

sdominick/iStock/Getty Images

Of almost 4 million urine screens examined, 52% were discordant for the screen-ordered drugs, Jeffrey Gudin, MD, said at the annual PAINWeek. Most common was the combination of opioids and benzodiazepines, which accounted for 21% of the discordant samples – and, in 64% of these cases, at least one of the drugs was not prescribed.

“Drug testing is a standard of care in pain management, and it’s the only objective way to know what patients are really taking,” said Dr. Gudin, director of pain and palliative care at Englewood (N.J.) Hospital and Medical Center. “What this tells us is that, if we just ask our patients, half the time they won’t tell you the whole story. More than 50% of the time things don’t match up. To me this is just unbelievable.”

Quest Diagnostics compiled these data, and many more, in its “Health Trends Report: Drug Misuse in America 2018.”

The report examines 3.9 million routine drug screens ordered by primary care and pain physicians during 2011-2017. It not only looks at prescription drug use and misuse but also tracks illicit drugs in both general and substance abuse patient populations. The findings reported at PAINWeek were based on 456,675 screens from 276,953 patients conducted in 2017. These results were included in the Quest Diagnostics medMATCH reports, which indicated what tested drugs were prescribed and whether these drugs were detected in the specimen.

The following were found among the discordant screens identified in 2017:

• 45% were positive for nonprescribed or illicit drugs in addition to all the prescribed drugs.
• 34% did not show all the drugs they had been prescribed, or any other tested drug.
• 22% did not show all the drugs they had been prescribed but were positive for other illicit or nonprescribed drugs.

The tests were ordered as a part of routine care – an important point, Dr. Gudin said in an interview. “These are not ‘gotcha tests,’ ” intended to catch patients unawares. “These are regularly ordered screens that are standard of care in pain management.”

The report found that men and women were equally likely to misuse medications (52% each). There were some age-related differences, with misuse peaking in young adulthood: 60% of 18- to 24-year-olds and 56% of 25- to 45-year-olds. Misuse dropped off in those aged 55-64 years (52%) and in those 65 years and older (43%). But even children showed evidence of medication misuse, with about 41% of samples from children aged 10 years and younger being discordant.

The rates of misuse were about 50% in Medicare and private pay patients, but around 65% in Medicaid patients.

There was some good news: In the general patient population, opioid use was down by 12% from 2016 – the largest annual decrease Quest has noted since 2012. Several factors probably contributed to that decline, including shifts in clinical care and payer reimbursement, as well as regulatory and legislative restrictions.

“This shows that we’re doing better on the pain management front,” Dr. Gudin said. “But in substance use disorder settings, we saw 400% increases for both fentanyl and heroin. The addiction front it out of control.”

More than 27% of all specimens that came from substance abuse treatment centers were positive for nonprescribed fentanyl and 10% were positive for heroin. “We also saw that, in 2016, 45% of those heroin-positive samples had fentanyl in them, and in 2017, 83% did.”

Although not discussed at PAINWeek, the report also noted a rise in gabapentin misuse. The antiepileptic is now the 10th most commonly prescribed drug in the United States, the report noted, with 68 million prescriptions dispensed last year. The report found that 9.5% of tests showed nonprescription gabapentin. In the subset of samples obtained from substance abuse treatment centers, gabapentin misuse increased by 800% from 2016 – the most dramatic increase of any of the tracked drugs.

The combination of gabapentin and opioids is risky, the report noted. Opioid-related deaths are 49% more common among those taking both than those taking opioids only.
 

[email protected]

SOURCE: Gudin J et al. PAINWeek 2018, abstract 44.

LAS VEGAS – More than half of patients tested for prescription drug compliance last year misused their medications, often supplementing them with nonprescribed and illicit drugs in dangerous combinations.

sdominick/iStock/Getty Images

Of almost 4 million urine screens examined, 52% were discordant for the screen-ordered drugs, Jeffrey Gudin, MD, said at the annual PAINWeek. Most common was the combination of opioids and benzodiazepines, which accounted for 21% of the discordant samples – and, in 64% of these cases, at least one of the drugs was not prescribed.

“Drug testing is a standard of care in pain management, and it’s the only objective way to know what patients are really taking,” said Dr. Gudin, director of pain and palliative care at Englewood (N.J.) Hospital and Medical Center. “What this tells us is that, if we just ask our patients, half the time they won’t tell you the whole story. More than 50% of the time things don’t match up. To me this is just unbelievable.”

Quest Diagnostics compiled these data, and many more, in its “Health Trends Report: Drug Misuse in America 2018.”

The report examines 3.9 million routine drug screens ordered by primary care and pain physicians during 2011-2017. It not only looks at prescription drug use and misuse but also tracks illicit drugs in both general and substance abuse patient populations. The findings reported at PAINWeek were based on 456,675 screens from 276,953 patients conducted in 2017. These results were included in the Quest Diagnostics medMATCH reports, which indicated what tested drugs were prescribed and whether these drugs were detected in the specimen.

The following were found among the discordant screens identified in 2017:

• 45% were positive for nonprescribed or illicit drugs in addition to all the prescribed drugs.
• 34% did not show all the drugs they had been prescribed, or any other tested drug.
• 22% did not show all the drugs they had been prescribed but were positive for other illicit or nonprescribed drugs.

The tests were ordered as a part of routine care – an important point, Dr. Gudin said in an interview. “These are not ‘gotcha tests,’ ” intended to catch patients unawares. “These are regularly ordered screens that are standard of care in pain management.”

The report found that men and women were equally likely to misuse medications (52% each). There were some age-related differences, with misuse peaking in young adulthood: 60% of 18- to 24-year-olds and 56% of 25- to 45-year-olds. Misuse dropped off in those aged 55-64 years (52%) and in those 65 years and older (43%). But even children showed evidence of medication misuse, with about 41% of samples from children aged 10 years and younger being discordant.

The rates of misuse were about 50% in Medicare and private pay patients, but around 65% in Medicaid patients.

There was some good news: In the general patient population, opioid use was down by 12% from 2016 – the largest annual decrease Quest has noted since 2012. Several factors probably contributed to that decline, including shifts in clinical care and payer reimbursement, as well as regulatory and legislative restrictions.

“This shows that we’re doing better on the pain management front,” Dr. Gudin said. “But in substance use disorder settings, we saw 400% increases for both fentanyl and heroin. The addiction front it out of control.”

More than 27% of all specimens that came from substance abuse treatment centers were positive for nonprescribed fentanyl and 10% were positive for heroin. “We also saw that, in 2016, 45% of those heroin-positive samples had fentanyl in them, and in 2017, 83% did.”

Although not discussed at PAINWeek, the report also noted a rise in gabapentin misuse. The antiepileptic is now the 10th most commonly prescribed drug in the United States, the report noted, with 68 million prescriptions dispensed last year. The report found that 9.5% of tests showed nonprescription gabapentin. In the subset of samples obtained from substance abuse treatment centers, gabapentin misuse increased by 800% from 2016 – the most dramatic increase of any of the tracked drugs.

The combination of gabapentin and opioids is risky, the report noted. Opioid-related deaths are 49% more common among those taking both than those taking opioids only.
 

[email protected]

SOURCE: Gudin J et al. PAINWeek 2018, abstract 44.

LAS VEGAS – More than half of patients tested for prescription drug compliance last year misused their medications, often supplementing them with nonprescribed and illicit drugs in dangerous combinations.

sdominick/iStock/Getty Images

Of almost 4 million urine screens examined, 52% were discordant for the screen-ordered drugs, Jeffrey Gudin, MD, said at the annual PAINWeek. Most common was the combination of opioids and benzodiazepines, which accounted for 21% of the discordant samples – and, in 64% of these cases, at least one of the drugs was not prescribed.

“Drug testing is a standard of care in pain management, and it’s the only objective way to know what patients are really taking,” said Dr. Gudin, director of pain and palliative care at Englewood (N.J.) Hospital and Medical Center. “What this tells us is that, if we just ask our patients, half the time they won’t tell you the whole story. More than 50% of the time things don’t match up. To me this is just unbelievable.”

Quest Diagnostics compiled these data, and many more, in its “Health Trends Report: Drug Misuse in America 2018.”

The report examines 3.9 million routine drug screens ordered by primary care and pain physicians during 2011-2017. It not only looks at prescription drug use and misuse but also tracks illicit drugs in both general and substance abuse patient populations. The findings reported at PAINWeek were based on 456,675 screens from 276,953 patients conducted in 2017. These results were included in the Quest Diagnostics medMATCH reports, which indicated what tested drugs were prescribed and whether these drugs were detected in the specimen.

The following were found among the discordant screens identified in 2017:

• 45% were positive for nonprescribed or illicit drugs in addition to all the prescribed drugs.
• 34% did not show all the drugs they had been prescribed, or any other tested drug.
• 22% did not show all the drugs they had been prescribed but were positive for other illicit or nonprescribed drugs.

The tests were ordered as a part of routine care – an important point, Dr. Gudin said in an interview. “These are not ‘gotcha tests,’ ” intended to catch patients unawares. “These are regularly ordered screens that are standard of care in pain management.”

The report found that men and women were equally likely to misuse medications (52% each). There were some age-related differences, with misuse peaking in young adulthood: 60% of 18- to 24-year-olds and 56% of 25- to 45-year-olds. Misuse dropped off in those aged 55-64 years (52%) and in those 65 years and older (43%). But even children showed evidence of medication misuse, with about 41% of samples from children aged 10 years and younger being discordant.

The rates of misuse were about 50% in Medicare and private pay patients, but around 65% in Medicaid patients.

There was some good news: In the general patient population, opioid use was down by 12% from 2016 – the largest annual decrease Quest has noted since 2012. Several factors probably contributed to that decline, including shifts in clinical care and payer reimbursement, as well as regulatory and legislative restrictions.

“This shows that we’re doing better on the pain management front,” Dr. Gudin said. “But in substance use disorder settings, we saw 400% increases for both fentanyl and heroin. The addiction front it out of control.”

More than 27% of all specimens that came from substance abuse treatment centers were positive for nonprescribed fentanyl and 10% were positive for heroin. “We also saw that, in 2016, 45% of those heroin-positive samples had fentanyl in them, and in 2017, 83% did.”

Although not discussed at PAINWeek, the report also noted a rise in gabapentin misuse. The antiepileptic is now the 10th most commonly prescribed drug in the United States, the report noted, with 68 million prescriptions dispensed last year. The report found that 9.5% of tests showed nonprescription gabapentin. In the subset of samples obtained from substance abuse treatment centers, gabapentin misuse increased by 800% from 2016 – the most dramatic increase of any of the tracked drugs.

The combination of gabapentin and opioids is risky, the report noted. Opioid-related deaths are 49% more common among those taking both than those taking opioids only.
 

[email protected]

SOURCE: Gudin J et al. PAINWeek 2018, abstract 44.