2018 AANS Annual Scientific Meeting-Pain and Narcotic Addiction in Neurosurgery

Video Transcription

Video Summary

Dr. Ellen Ayer, co-director for functional neurosurgery at Henry Ford Health System, discusses the issues surrounding pain and narcotic addiction in neurosurgery. She highlights the opioid crisis and the need for the medical community to address it. Dr. Ayer mentions that there are 260 million opioid prescriptions filled every year in the United States, resulting in a growing toll on the community. She explains that while there has been a decrease in opioid prescriptions, there has been an increase in heroin-related deaths from individuals who were initially hooked on prescription drugs. Dr. Ayer discusses the steps that the government has taken, including cutting production of Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 opioids and establishing an opioid fraud and abuse detection unit. She emphasizes the importance of reducing opioid prescriptions, weaning long-term users off medications, and exploring effective alternatives. Dr. Ayer suggests a multimodal approach to pain management, including counseling patients on opioid expectations, utilizing prescription drug monitoring programs, considering opioid conversion tools, promoting disposal of excess medications, and knowing state board guidelines. She also discusses the need for physician education and communication with patients and other healthcare providers to set appropriate pain control expectations and manage patient satisfaction.

Asset Caption

Ellen L. Air, MD, PhD, FAANS

Keywords

pain management

narcotic addiction

neurosurgery

opioid crisis

opioid prescriptions

heroin-related deaths

government actions

multimodal approach