Prescription drug abuse has emerged as a major epidemic in the US and now accounts for 75% of all overdose deaths, with opioids alone accounting for 75% of those fatalities. Opioid abuse costs the US healthcare system $72.5 billion annually.
There is huge healthcare demand for effective treatment of chronic non-malignant pain disorders. Statistics suggest that this is a silent epidemic sweeping the US, affecting approximately 116 million citizens. It is now one of the most common reasons why patients seek medical care. It is estimated that this costs the US economy more than $600bn per annum when measured in medical costs and decreased work productivity.
Chronic pain has been clearly identified as a disorder associated with many psychosocial conditions including appetite loss, depression and sleep disturbances. As a consequence of this, the use of multimodal therapeutic plans have become imperative for the effective treatment of patients suffering such pain. This includes interventional therapies, such as injectable medications, nerve blocks and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) which are used in multiple situations. Such therapeutic plans will typically employ the use of both opioid and non-opioid analgesics to help control the pain.
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