In the 2020 Presidential election there was a total of 159 million votes for the two candidates for USA President. There is claimed that there is somewhere north of 100,000 people are dealing with chronic pain.
That number strongly suggests that regardless of what candidate one is talking about. If the chronic pain community got behind to dethrone an incumbent or elect a first time candidate for a city/county/state/federal office. If the community got united behind a particular candidate, that person would be elected or dethroned.
Joe Biden 4 yrs ago
Joe Biden yesterday
Over the last FOUR YEARS the CDC has stated that the number of our citizens that have been poisoned/OD on illegal Fentanyl from China and Mexican cartels is in the 400,000 neighborhood. The USA has only 47 cities with a population of > 400,000 people.
Apparently it is recognized that the CDC opioid dosing guidelines have had a significant impact on the chronic pain community, but little/no real interest in any attempt in tracking the number of citizens that have died as a result of those CDC guidelines.
how many chronic pain pts have died from having their pain medication reduced or stopped entirely over the last 4 yrs because of actions of the DEA
While there is no precise data on the number of chronic pain patients who have died specifically due to medication reductions or discontinuations over the last 4 years, this issue has been recognized as a serious concern:
## Impact of Opioid Prescription Changes
The CDC and FDA have acknowledged that abrupt or rapid discontinuation of opioid pain medications can lead to serious consequences for chronic pain patients, including:
– Severe withdrawal symptoms
– Uncontrolled pain
– Psychological distress
– Increased risk of suicide
In 2019, the FDA reported receiving reports of serious harm, including suicide, in patients who had their opioid medications suddenly discontinued or rapidly decreased[1].
## Unintended Consequences
The 2016 CDC guidelines on opioid prescribing, while intended to address the opioid crisis, had some unintended negative effects:
– Many doctors became hesitant to prescribe opioids, even to long-term pain patients
– Some patients had difficulty getting prescriptions filled at pharmacies
– Rapid tapering or abrupt discontinuation of opioids became more common
These changes left many chronic pain patients struggling to manage their conditions[2].
## Lack of Comprehensive Data
Unfortunately, there is no centralized tracking system that captures deaths specifically related to opioid discontinuation in pain patients. The full scope of this issue remains unclear due to:
– Difficulty determining cause of death in complex cases
– Lack of standardized reporting on medication changes prior to death
– Potential misclassification of deaths (e.g. as drug overdoses)
While exact numbers are unavailable, individual cases have been reported. For example, a man named Danny Elliott died by suicide in 2022 after being unable to find a doctor to continue his long-term pain medication[2].
## Recent Guideline Updates
In 2022, the CDC released updated opioid prescribing guidelines that aim to provide more nuanced guidance and reduce harm to pain patients. The new recommendations:
– Emphasize individualized patient care
– Warn about risks of rapid dose changes
– Acknowledge that some patients may benefit from long-term opioid therapy
However, experts note it may take time for these updates to significantly impact clinical practice and policies[2].
While the full human cost remains unknown, it’s clear that opioid prescribing changes have had profound effects on many chronic pain patients. Balancing pain management with opioid risk reduction continues to be a complex challenge for the medical community.
Citations:
[1] https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-identifies-harm-reported-sudden-discontinuation-opioid-pain-medicines-and-requires-label-changes
[2] https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/17/health/opioid-chronic-pain-cdc-guidelines-khn-partner/index.html
[3] https://www.mbc.ca.gov/Download/Publications/pain-guidelines.pdf
[4] https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/rr/rr7103a1.htm
[5] https://www.ama-assn.org/press-center/press-releases/report-shows-decreases-opioid-prescribing-increase-overdoses
[6] https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/65/rr/rr6501e1.htm
[7] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK537318/
[8] https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/opioid-use-disorder
Filed under: General Problems
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