Painkillers
Roger Knaggs has been quoted in The Daily Telegraph as saying that UK data on opioid overuse may be imprecise but we should not dismiss it as an issue of public concern.
People are increasingly coming to pharmacies complaining of lower back pain, osteoarthritis and nerve pain.
“Around 2000, there were several trials that suggested opioids might have some benefits in these types of pain,” adds Prof Knaggs. “It has taken a little while, but those findings have finally filtered through to everyday clinical practice. Certainly, the pharmaceutical industry has been very proactive in promoting these medicines to health-care professionals.” As a result, those new medications were taken up enthusiastically by patients and doctors alike.
“But there are lots of problems with those trials. First of all, the amount of pain relief provided is no better than that provided by alternatives, such as anti-epileptics and antidepressants such as amitriptyline.
“Secondly, the trials were largely limited to 12-16 weeks, but once drugs go into everyday clinical practice, patients can end up taking them for much longer. So we’ve now got patients possibly taking these drugs for many years on the basis of limited evidence.”
Posted on Wednesday 1st October 2014