The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new recommendations and guidelines on how to prescribe opioids as pain relievers.
U.S. CDC released new guidelines on prescribing opioids to patients. (Photo: CDC)
What’s Behind the New Guidelines on Taking Opioids?
A new study shows that 1 out of 5 adults in the country are experiencing chronic pain, according to a study published by the website of CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. With this, there is an increasing demand for the use of opioids as pain relievers.
This caught the attention of the U.S. CDC which immediately released new recommendations and guidelines about when to use the drug. Acting Director of the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Christopher Jones said that the new guidelines now offer advice on short-term pain relief as well as treatment of chronic pain.
Moreover, the 2022 guidelines are not presented without a rigid study conducted. In fact, the agency said that this will help doctors and patients decide the course of using opioids as a treatment. If this will not be controlled and regulated, patients might be addicted to opioids or worst, overdose.
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New Guidelines and Recommendations
UPI reports the new guidelines and recommendations for using and prescribing opioids. According to Jones, the new recommendations focus on four major themes:
- Determining whether to prescribe opioids for pain in the first place.
- Selecting the appropriate opioid and dosage for each patient.
- Deciding how long the opioid treatment will last, and when to reassess whether it’s still needed.
- Assisting the risks and addressing the potential harms of opioid use.
It was also mentioned in the new guidelines that patients should seek first other pain relievers before using opioids. Doctors are also advised to low doses of opioids, especially for those who have not taken them before.
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