RSSPainkillers more harm than good for back pain?
Relationship Between Early Opioid Prescribing for Acute Occupational Low
Back Pain and Disability Duration, Medical Costs, Subsequent Surgery and
Late Opioid Use.
Spine. 32(19):2127-2132, September 1, 2007.
Study Design. Retrospective cohort study of workers’ compensation (WC)
claims with acute disabling low back pain (LBP).
Summary of Background Data. Opioid analgesics have become more accepted
for acute pain management. However, treatment guidelines recommend
limited opioid use for acute LBP management. Little is known about the
long-term impact on outcomes of opioid use for acute LBP.
Conclusion. Given the negative association between receipt of early
opioids for acute LBP and outcomes, it is suggested that the use of
opioids for the management of acute LBP may be counterproductive to
recovery.
