MP29-18 PHARMACEUTICAL PAYMENTS FOR OPIOIDS SIGNIFICANTLY FAVOR EXTENDED-RELEASE MEDICATION AND CORRELATE WITH PHYSICIAN PRESCRIPTIONS

Opioid rotation with extended-release opioids: where should we begin?

Opioid rotation is a common and necessary clinical practice in the management of chronic non-cancer pain to improve therapeutic efficacy with the lowest opioid dose. When dose escalations fail to achieve adequate analgesia or are associated with intolerable side effects, a trial of a new opioid should be considered. Much of the scientific rationale of opioid rotation is based on the wide interi...

Update on prescription extended-release opioids and appropriate patient selection

Chronic pain is largely underdiagnosed, often undertreated, and expected to increase as the American population ages. Many patients with chronic pain require long-term treatment with analgesic medications, and pain management may involve use of prescription opioids for patients whose pain is inadequately controlled through other therapies. Yet because of the potential for abuse and addiction, m...

Medicare physician payments and spending.

The Medicare program's physician payment method is intended to control spending while ensuring beneficiary access to physician services, but there are signs that it may not be working. The physician's role in the health care delivery system as the primary source of information and treatment options, together with growing demand for services and the imperfect state of knowledge about appropriate...

Predictive Modeling of Physician-Patient Dynamics That Influence Sleep Medication Prescriptions and Clinical Decision-Making

Insomnia remains under-diagnosed and poorly treated despite its high economic and social costs. Though previous work has examined how patient characteristics affect sleep medication prescriptions, the role of physician characteristics that influence this clinical decision remains unclear. We sought to understand patient and physician factors that influence sleep medication prescribing patterns ...

XANAX XR CIV (alprazolam) extended-release tablets WARNING: RISKS FROM CONCOMITANT USE WITH OPIOIDS