Urologists can play active role in reducing opioid epidemic
“Urologists can play an active role in reducing the opioid epidemic just by prescribing fewer opioids,” says Kathryn Hacker Gessner, MD, PhD, in this video.
After surgical procedures, surgeons across specialties overprescribe opioids, and urologists are no exception, a study from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill has found.
“Urologists can play an active role in reducing the opioid epidemic just by prescribing fewer opioids,” said first author Kathryn Hacker Gessner, MD, PhD, who worked on the study with Matthew E. Nielsen, MD, MS, and colleagues. Dr. Gessner presented the findings at the Society of Urologic Oncology annual meeting in Phoenix.
“We’ve educated all of our providers on what those [prescribing] guidelines are,” she said in a video interview with Urology Times. “For specific procedures, we have standard amounts that we prescribe. As an example, following cystectomy, our guidelines are, at the time of discharge, prescribe 15 5-mg oxycodone equivalents.”
View the video to learn more about the study data and Dr. Gessner’s recommendations for a multimodal pain control regimen.
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