In an effort to stem the death toll from opioid overdose, United States public health officials have promoted the prescription and use of medications like buprenorphine that blunt the effects of illicit opioids such as fentanyl.
However, what happens when patients on these medications require surgery and anesthesia?
Currently, there are no evidence-based guidelines to help clinicians handle this patient population.
To fill in knowledge gaps, Mark Bicket, M.D., Ph.D., and his team examined trends in use of medications for opioid use disorder among surgical patients.
The results are published in the journal Anesthesiology.