Re: TEXT--Transdermal Fentanyl Preferred Over Other Opioids forChronic Pa

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Thanks for this info..printing out and going to fax it to my doctor..Had one who gave me this and it helped....this new one not too sure..LOL

Hugs To You,Theresa In Florida"Lord help me Not to Grumble and Complain"

TEXT--Transdermal Fentanyl Preferred Over Other Opioids forChronic Pa

Transdermal Fentanyl Preferred Over Other Opioids for Chronic Pain WESTPORT, CT (Reuters Health) Aug 22 - In the first long-termprospective trial of opioid analgesia for the management of chronicnoncancer pain, most patients preferred transdermal fentanyl overpreviously used opioid medications, according to a multinationalresearch team. Dr. Milligan, of South Cleveland Hospital in Middlesbrough, UK,and colleagues enrolled patients with chronic pain of 8.8 years' meanduration who had been using one of 40 different potent opioids. Therewere 530 patients included in the safety analysis and 524 in theefficacy analysis. The mean starting dose of the fentanyl was 48 µg/hour, which wasincreased to 90 µg/hour by month 12. At baseline, 72% of subjects responded to treatment, with 67% remainingstable over the course of the 12-month study, the investigators reportin the August issue of the Journal of Pain. Eighty-nine percent of patients preferred fentanyl to their previoustreatment, primarily because of better pain relief and increasedconvenience of use. Most adverse events were of mild to moderate intensity, with similarincidence in those older than 65 compared with younger individuals. Themost common adverse events considered possibly or definitely related tothe fentanyl were nausea, constipation, somnolence, increased sweating,and vomiting. The incidence of adverse events did not increase withprolonged treatment. There were no reports of addictive behavior among patients in thetransdermal fentanyl group. "Fear of addiction is one of the reasons forthe underuse of opioids in chronic noncancer pain," they write. Theresearchers believe "this study provides further evidence that thesefears are unfounded." J Pain 2001;2:197-204. Copyright © 2001 Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. Republication orredistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without theprior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for anyerrors or delays in the content, or for any