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Thread: Doctors told to avoid prescribing opiates for chronic pain

  1. #1

    Doctors told to avoid prescribing opiates for chronic pain

    -The nation's top federal health agency urged doctors to avoid prescribing powerful opiate painkillers for patients with chronic pain, saying the risks from such drugs far outweigh the benefits for most people.

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in its first ever guidelines for dispensing the morphine-like, addictive drugs, such as Vicodin and OxyContin, said it took the action Tuesday to combat the nation's deadly prescription painkiller epidemic.

    The guidelines carve out an exception for patients receiving cancer treatment or end-of-life care. When doctors determine that such drugs are necessary in other situations, the CDC advises doctors prescribe the lowest possible dose for the shortest amount of time.

    About 40 Americans die each day from overdosing on prescription painkillers, according to the CDC. In 2013, an estimated 1.9 million people abused or were dependent on prescription opiates.

    "We know of no other medication routinely used for a nonfatal condition that kills patients so frequently," said CDC director Thomas Frieden. "We hope to see fewer deaths from opiates. That's the bottom line. These are really dangerous medications that carry the risk of addiction and death."

    The CDC directed the guidelines to primary care physicians, who prescribe nearly half of opiates. Doctors aren't legally obligated to follow the recommendations, which are intended for adult patients, but such directives often have influence.

    The CDC hopes the guidelines will help doctors determine when to begin or continue opiates for chronic pain, which type of painkiller to choose, how long to administer the drugs and how to weigh their risks.

    Andrew Kolodny, executive director of Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing, called the recommendations a "game changer" that doctors are likely to follow.

    "For the first time, the federal government is communicating clearly that the widespread practice of treating common pain conditions with long-term opioids is inappropriate," Kolodny said. "The CDC is making it perfectly clear that medical practice needs to change because we’re harming pain patients and fueling a public health crisis"....

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...oses/81809704/

  2. #2
    Senior Member KaySharpe's Avatar
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    Wow. I'm not even sure how to feel about that ... having once been dependent on those very painkillers, because nothing else would work for me and some other classes of drugs nearly killed me ... but the risks of the opiates were always at the forefront of my mind, and I was grateful that God not only delivered me from the illness that caused the need, but from the dependency to drugs as well.

    It's a good thing there are natural alternatives to all of that.

  3. #3
    Dealing with some back issues right now, I have to honestly say that curcumin, boswellia, fish oil, etc.....are better than ibuprofin and acetaminophen. Chiropractic adjustments will get it all straight in about 2-3 more adjustments though.

    Quote Originally Posted by KaySharpe View Post
    Wow. I'm not even sure how to feel about that ... having once been dependent on those very painkillers, because nothing else would work for me and some other classes of drugs nearly killed me ... but the risks of the opiates were always at the forefront of my mind, and I was grateful that God not only delivered me from the illness that caused the need, but from the dependency to drugs as well.

    It's a good thing there are natural alternatives to all of that.

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    Valiant Woman (04-23-2016)

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    Senior Member Valiant Woman's Avatar
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    For now they're just "urging" them. So unless it becomes a law, the doctors will keep prescribing them. Those drugs are a big money maker and no way will they stop.
    When your praise match your prayers, the answer will come.
    https://www.facebook.com/Valiant-Wom...1103844642026/

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    CatchyUsername (04-23-2016)

  7. #5
    Krys, as I said in the other thread, the heroin epidemic many towns are experiencing is directly related to the over prescribed opiates for things like sports injuries in teens. All of the medical schools made it part of their curriculum to stress pain management, and the overuse of opiods.

    I was watching Anthony Bordain's show on Netflix, and he went back to the small fishing village in Massachusetts where it all started for him in his early 20s. The town has become ground zero for the story of the heroin epidemic. I knew Anthony Bordain had been a heroin addict many years ago, and thought this would be an interesting series because I thought he might talk about his own life, and he did. He also talked to former junkies and a comment one said stuck with me. She said that her addiction started (ironically) in the hospital when she got some bad news about her husband. She goes, "You know, when they told me this news, what I needed was a hug and maybe a shoulder to cry on, but they gave me pain killers instead". That literally was how it started for her.

    What I have found out is that the pills for an addict (they have to take a lot of them) are much more expensive than heroin is. Heroin has become much more accessible and much cheaper than pills. It is simply a natural progression for an addict.

  8. #6
    So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John's Avatar
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    By now, most of the pill poppers are using heroin.

  9. #7
    Of note, the doctor I saw interviewed about the heroin epidemic and how it starts with opiates (especially oxy), was talking about how the doctors were deceived into thinking that oxy was very low risk when it came to addiction. I found a lengthy article about the state of Kentucky suing Purdue Pharma, the company that manufactured oxy and pushed it into the mainstream though fraud and deception. I pulled a pertinent small quote from the article that explains it.

    http://theweek.com/articles/541564/h...utical-company


    Perhaps knowing that doctors would be vigilant against prescribing drugs with the potential for abuse, Purdue set out to distinguish OxyContin from rivals as soon as it dropped. The cornerstone of its marketing campaign was the drug's incredibly low risk of addiction, an enviable characteristic made possible by its patented time-release formula. Through an array of promotional materials, including literature, brochures, videotapes, and Web content, Purdue proudly asserted that the potential for addiction was very small, at one point stating it to be "less than 1 percent."

    The time-release conceit even worked on the FDA, which stated that "Delayed absorption, as provided by OxyContin tablets is believed to reduce the abuse liability of a drug." Armed with the time-release formula and misleading statistics about the risk of addiction, Purdue positioned the drug as a relatively safe choice for CNCP patients. Sales representatives told some doctors that the drug didn't even produce a buzz, according to USA Today. (This for a pill that has since drawn frequent comparisons to heroin in terms of analgesia, euphoria, and the propensity for addiction.)

    Between physician databases, incentive-happy sales reps, and an aggressive blitz package of promotional ephemera, Purdue's multifaceted marketing campaign pushed OxyContin out of the niche offices of oncologists and pain specialists and into the primary care bazaar, where prescriptions for the drug could be handed out to millions upon millions of Americans. The most scathing irony is that what allowed OxyContin to reach so many households and communities was the claim that it wasn't dangerous.

  10. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by KaySharpe View Post
    It's a good thing there are natural alternatives to all of that.
    Quote Originally Posted by CatchyUsername View Post
    Dealing with some back issues right now, I have to honestly say that curcumin, boswellia, fish oil, etc.....are better than ibuprofin and acetaminophen...
    Its all so sad, people trusting doctors to help relieve pain turning into addicts.

    Kay what natural alternatives were you speaking of...and Catchy thanks, do you have any more to add to the list?

  11. #9
    Boswellia and curcumin both are probably tops in terms of clinical testing. Noni juice (with pulp) is fantastic for pain as well. I believe those are the tops and have been studied quite a bit. I also found a list at this link:

    http://naturalsociety.com/16-natures...-pain-killers/

    Quote Originally Posted by krystian View Post
    Its all so sad, people trusting doctors to help relieve pain turning into addicts.

    Kay what natural alternatives were you speaking of...and Catchy thanks, do you have any more to add to the list?

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    krystian (04-24-2016)

  13. #10
    Senior Member KaySharpe's Avatar
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    I have to be super-careful what I say due to FDA censorship. PM me :)

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    krystian (04-24-2016)

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