Opioid analgesia did not reduce the intensity of acute low back and neck pain
Researchers have shown no significant reduction in the severity of acute low back and neck pain when opioid analgesics are added to standard treatment.Researchers have shown that there is no significant reduction in the severity of acute low back and neck pain when opioid analgesics are added to standard treatment. Therefore, it is not recommended to use opioids to treat these patients.
Researchers from the University of Sydney and the University of Southern Denmark in Odense studied the efficacy and safety of a short course of treatment with opioid analgesics for acute low back and neck pain. The results of the study are published in The Lancet.
The average pain score after six weeks was 2.78 on a ten-point scale in the opioid group and 2.25 in the placebo group. At least one adverse event was reported in 35% of participants in the opioid group and 30% in the placebo group. There was an increase in the proportion of patients with adverse events associated with opioid use in the first group. In particular, constipation was observed in 7.5% in the opioid group and only 3.5% in the placebo group.
They analyzed data from 347 adult patients who presented to treatment facilities in Sydney for low back and/or neck pain between 2016 and 2022. Duration of pain was 12 weeks or less with pain intensity of moderate or greater. Participants were equally divided into two groups. In one group, patients were treated according to current guidelines with an additional oral opioid analgesic (combination drug oxycodone + naloxone at a daily dose of oxycodone up to 20 mg). In the second group, patients received conventional treatment according to current recommendations in combination with placebo. The duration of treatment was six weeks. The researchers assessed changes in the patients' condition using a ten-point scale to evaluate pain intensity.
The authors emphasized that since opioids do not significantly reduce pain syndrome in acute low back and neck pain, it is necessary to reconsider the approach to prescribing such drugs for these conditions in clinical practice.