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March 13th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda MONDAY, March 12 (HealthDay News) —
Older patients prescribed narcotic painkiller drugs, such as codeine or
oxycodone, soon after short-stay surgery are at increased risk of becoming
long-term users, a new study finds.
Canadian researchers looked at data from almost 400,000 patients aged
66 and older who had short-stay surgery for cataracts, gallbladder
removal, prostate tissue removal or varicose vein stripping.
Of those patients, almost 28,000 (more than 7 percent) were prescribed
narcotic painkillers, also called opioids, within seven days after
hospital discharge. More than 30,000 (nearly 8 percent) were prescribed
opioids one year after surgery. Almost 3,000 (more than 10 percent) of
patients from both groups were identified as long-term opioid users one
year after surgery.
Patients who received an opioid prescription within seven days of
surgery were about 44 percent more likely to become long-term opioid users
than those who did not receive an opioid prescription, according to
research leader Dr. Asim Alam, of the University of Toronto, and
colleagues.
Codeine was the most commonly prescribed opioid for patients who
received a prescription within seven days of surgery, followed by
oxycodone.
The study also found that patients who received a prescription for
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) within seven days of
surgery were 3.7 times more likely to become long-term NSAID users than
those who did not receive an early prescription.
“Our findings suggest that the prescription of codeine after short-stay
surgery may contribute to the use of other potent opioids, such as
oxycodone, which have been shown to be associated with increased morbidity
and mortality,” the researchers concluded. “These points do not even
consider that the continued use of opioids after one year raises the
possibility that the exposure may result in addiction or physical
dependence.”
The study was published March 12 in the journal Archives of Internal
Medicine.
The authors of an accompanying journal commentary said previous studies
have shown that opioids are more often prescribed to women than men, and
that women tend to take higher doses.
They suggest that doctors discuss with their patients the risks and
benefits before prescribing opioids for chronic pain.
More information
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration offers a guide to the safe use of pain medications.
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