A research team from George Washington University uncovered distressing news about opioid treatment.
Orange County, CA - November 28th 2016 - George Washington University researcher Victoria Shanmugam, M.D. recently published a study suggesting that patients suffering from chronic wounds heal expeditiously without opioids. These types of wounds affect approximately 6.5 million people in the United States and are routinely treated with opioids. The problem is that there is little comprehension of how opioids impinge wound healing. The study, published in Wound Repair and Regeneration, shows a strong correlation between opioid exposure and a longer healing time.
Chronic wounds are seemingly perennial injuries that can cause a copious amount of pain that interferes with a patient’s mobility and overall quality of life; significantly affecting mortality. Cost of care for chronic wounds is estimated to be at $25 billion per year, which can be a stressful and heavy burden for those struggling to afford care.
"Opioid analgesics are commonly prescribed to patients with chronic wounds, but until now, little to no research had been done to determine the relationship between opioid treatment and wound healing," said Shanmugam, an associate professor of medicine at the George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences.The research team studied 450 subjects enrolled in the Wound Etiology and Healing Study (WE-HEAL) biorepository. Data was collected using baseline measurements for total wound surface area, pain score evaluation, and the amount of time the wound was exposed to opiates. A patient’s opioid dose was found to be concurrent with total wound surface area. The data was analyzed using static multivariate models, fixed-effects, and time to event analysis.
Although the study had limitations, researchers divulged a statistically significant correlation between opioid exposure and prolonged healing of wounds. To be more certain of the effects opioids have on healing, more research needs to be executed to determine the type of relationship.
“Finding ways to improve healing of chronic wounds will have an enormous effect on patients and the healthcare system,” said Shanmugam.
