Conversion from high-dose full-opioid agonists to sublingual buprenorphine reduces pain scores and improves quality of life for chronic pain patients

Danielle Daitch, Jonathan Daitch, Daniel Novinson, Michael Frey, Carol Mitnick, Joseph Pergolizzi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

32 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to determine the effectiveness of converting patients from high doses of full-opioid agonists to sublingual (SL) buprenorphine. Design: An observational report of outcomes assessment. Setting: An interventional pain management practice setting in the United States. Subjects: Thirty-five chronic pain patients (age 24-66) were previously treated with high-dose opioid-agonist drugs and converted to SL buprenorphine. Patients' daily morphine equivalents ranged from 200mg to 1,370mg preconversion, with a mean daily dose of 550mg. Methods: A retrospective chart analysis examined numerical pain levels and quality of life scores before and 2 months after conversion to SL buprenorphine. Results: After continuation of SL buprenorphine therapy for 2 months, the mean pain score decreased from 7.2 to 3.5 (P

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2087-2094
Number of pages8
JournalPain Medicine
Volume15
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1 2014

Keywords

  • Analgesia
  • Buprenorphine
  • Opioid conversion
  • Opioid tolerance
  • Opioid-iNDUCED hYperalgesia
  • Sublingual buprenorphine

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Clinical Neurology
  • Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
  • General Medicine

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