AJSM April 2019 Podcast: Elective Shoulder Surgery in the Opioid Naïve: Rates of and Risk Factors for Long-term Postoperative Opioid Use

The purpose of the study was to identify (1) the proportion of opioid-naïve patients undergoing elective shoulder surgery, (2) the rates of postoperative opioid use among these patients, and (3) the risk factors associated with long-term postoperative opioid use. Most patients were opioid naïve before elective shoulder surgery; however, among opioid-naïve patients, 1 in 7 patients were still using opioids beyond 180 days after surgery. Among all variables, a history of mental illness most significantly increased the risk of long-term opioid use after elective shoulder surgery.   Click here to read the article.