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Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care Jun 2024This case report explores the challenges and complexities associated with opioid management of cancer pain, emphasizing the importance of early involvement of a hospice...
This case report explores the challenges and complexities associated with opioid management of cancer pain, emphasizing the importance of early involvement of a hospice consultation team and the adoption of a multidisciplinary approach to care. A 56-year-old man with advanced pancreatic cancer experienced escalating pain and inappropriate opioid prescriptions, highlighting the shortcomings of traditional pain management approaches. Despite procedural intervention by the attending physician and increased opioid dosages, the patient's condition deteriorated. Subsequently, the involvement of a hospice consultation team, in conjunction with collaborative psychiatric care, led to an overall improvement. The case underscores the necessity of early hospice engagement, psychosocial assessments, and collaborative approaches in the optimization of patient-centered palliative care.
PubMed: 38863562
DOI: 10.14475/jhpc.2024.27.2.77 -
Genes, Brain, and Behavior Jun 2024Motherhood is a costly life-history transition accompanied by behavioral and neural plasticity necessary for offspring care. Motherhood in the monogamous prairie vole is...
Motherhood is a costly life-history transition accompanied by behavioral and neural plasticity necessary for offspring care. Motherhood in the monogamous prairie vole is associated with decreased pair bond strength, suggesting a trade-off between parental investment and pair bond maintenance. Neural mechanisms governing pair bonds and maternal bonds overlap, creating possible competition between the two. We measured mRNA expression of genes encoding receptors for oxytocin (oxtr), dopamine (d1r and d2r), mu-opioids (oprm1a), and kappa-opioids (oprk1a) within three brain areas processing salience of sociosensory cues (anterior cingulate cortex; ACC), pair bonding (nucleus accumbens; NAc), and maternal care (medial preoptic area; MPOA). We compared gene expression differences between pair bonded prairie voles that were never pregnant, pregnant (~day 16 of pregnancy), and recent mothers (day 3 of lactation). We found greater gene expression in the NAc (oxtr, d2r, oprm1a, and oprk1a) and MPOA (oxtr, d1r, d2r, oprm1a, and oprk1a) following the transition to motherhood. Expression for all five genes in the ACC was greatest for females that had been bonded for longer. Gene expression within each region was highly correlated, indicating that oxytocin, dopamine, and opioids comprise a complimentary gene network for social signaling. ACC-NAc gene expression correlations indicated that being a mother (oxtr and d1r) or maintaining long-term pair bonds (oprm1a) relies on the coordination of different signaling systems within the same circuit. Our study suggests the maternal brain undergoes changes that prepare females to face the trade-off associated with increased emotional investment in offspring, while also maintaining a pair bond.
Topics: Animals; Female; Arvicolinae; Receptors, Opioid, mu; Pair Bond; Maternal Behavior; Nucleus Accumbens; Pregnancy; Receptors, Oxytocin; Receptors, Opioid, kappa; Gyrus Cinguli; Preoptic Area; Receptors, Dopamine D1
PubMed: 38861664
DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12906 -
Medical Anthropology Quarterly Jun 2024This article examines how militarized regimes of narcotics and price control sustain unpalliated cancer pain in Pakistan. It shows how these regimes of...
This article examines how militarized regimes of narcotics and price control sustain unpalliated cancer pain in Pakistan. It shows how these regimes of control-reimagined as "regimes of pain"-render morphine, a cheap, effective opiate analgesic, scarce in hospitals. Meanwhile, heroin, morphine's illegal derivative, proliferates in illicit circuits. The article highlights a devastating consequence of the global wars against drugs and "terror": the consignment of cancer patients to agonizing end-of-life pain. Widening the analytic lens upon palliation beyond bodies and their clinical encounters, the article offers a geopolitics of palliation. It shows how narcovigilance targeting illicit drugs has the perverse effect of throttling morphine's licit supply. It shows further how unviably low price ceilings, purported to ensure a poor population's access to morphine, render it scarce on the official market. These mutually reinforcing regimes of control thus thwart their own purported objectives, consigning cancer patients to preventable, yet unpalliated, pain.
PubMed: 38860724
DOI: 10.1111/maq.12865 -
Analytical Methods : Advancing Methods... Jun 2024A facile electrochemical approach is proposed for the synchronous determination of acetaminophen (ACP), codeine (COD) and caffeine (CAF) utilizing unmodified...
A facile electrochemical approach is proposed for the synchronous determination of acetaminophen (ACP), codeine (COD) and caffeine (CAF) utilizing unmodified screen-printed electrodes (SPEs). The determination of ACP, COD and CAF has been explored across different supporting electrolytes including sulfuric acid (HSO), hydrochloric acid (HCl), phosphoric acid (HPO) and Briton Robinson (B.R) buffer solutions. It was found that a 0.05 mol L sulfuric acid solution is an optimal supporting electrolyte utilized for voltammetric analysis of ACP, COD, and CAF with improved sensitivity, stability, and reproducibility. The electro-analytical sensing of ACP, COD and CAF was investigated using SPEs within linear concentration ranges of 3.0-35.0 μmol L, 10-160 μmol L and 10-160 μmol L and revealed competitively low limits of detection (3S/N) of 0.9, 4.8 and 6.3 μmol L for ACP, COD and CAF, respectively. The results indicated the possibility of such a simple and quick electroanalytical protocol for online monitoring of pharmaceutical formulations comprising ACP, COD, and CAF drugs in human fluids with satisfactory recovery.
Topics: Acetaminophen; Codeine; Caffeine; Humans; Graphite; Electrodes; Electrochemical Techniques; Limit of Detection; Reproducibility of Results
PubMed: 38855887
DOI: 10.1039/d4ay00449c -
Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy =... Jul 2024Cannabinoid CB agonists show therapeutic efficacy without unwanted CB-mediated side effects. The G protein-biased CB receptor agonist LY2828360 attenuates the...
Cannabinoid CB receptors in primary sensory neurons are implicated in CB agonist-mediated suppression of paclitaxel-induced neuropathic nociception and sexually-dimorphic sparing of morphine tolerance.
Cannabinoid CB agonists show therapeutic efficacy without unwanted CB-mediated side effects. The G protein-biased CB receptor agonist LY2828360 attenuates the maintenance of chemotherapy-induced neuropathic nociception in male mice and blocks development of morphine tolerance in this model. However, the cell types involved in this phenomenon are unknown and whether this therapeutic profile is observed in female mice has never been investigated. We used conditional deletion of CB receptors to determine the cell population(s) mediating the anti-allodynic and morphine-sparing effects of CB agonists. Anti-allodynic effects of structurally distinct CB agonists (LY2828360 and AM1710) were present in paclitaxel-treated CB mice and in mice lacking CB receptors in CX3CR1 expressing microglia/macrophages (CX3CR1; CB), but were absent in mice lacking CB receptors in peripheral sensory neurons (Advillin; CB). The morphine-sparing effect of LY28282360 occurred in a sexually-dimorphic manner, being present in male, but not female, mice. LY2828360 treatment (3 mg/kg per day i.p. x 12 days) blocked the development of morphine tolerance in male CB and CX3CR1; CB mice with established paclitaxel-induced neuropathy but was absent in male (or female) Advillin; CB mice. Co-administration of morphine with a low dose of LY2828360 (0.1 mg/kg per day i.p. x 6 days) reversed morphine tolerance in paclitaxel-treated male CB mice, but not Advillin; CB mice of either sex. LY2828360 (3 mg/kg per day i.p. x 8 days) delayed, but did not prevent, the development of paclitaxel-induced mechanical or cold allodynia in either CB or CX3CR1; CB mice of either sex. Our findings have potential clinical implications.
Topics: Animals; Paclitaxel; Male; Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB2; Female; Morphine; Sensory Receptor Cells; Drug Tolerance; Mice; Neuralgia; Nociception; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Sex Characteristics; Mice, Knockout; Cannabinoid Receptor Agonists
PubMed: 38850666
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116879 -
Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy =... Jul 2024The association between polymorphisms of the human ATP binding cassette subfamily B member 1 (ABCB1) gene and opioid response has attracted intense attention recently....
The association between polymorphisms of the human ATP binding cassette subfamily B member 1 (ABCB1) gene and opioid response has attracted intense attention recently. As the ABCB1 gene encodes for the transporter P-glycoprotein in the brain and intestine involved in the pharmacokinetics of opioids, we investigated the effects of ABCB1 genetic polymorphisms on doses of opioids for pain relief and determined which pharmacokinetic process was affected in cancer pain patients. Sixty-eight cancer pain patients admitted for intrathecal therapy (ITT) were included. The association between ABCB1 genetic polymorphisms (C3435T, C1236T, G2677T/A and A61G) and systemic doses of opioids before ITT were investigated. Concentrations of oxycodone in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were determined by HPLC-MS/MS in 17 patients treated with oral oxycodone before ITT, and the influences of ABCB1 genetic polymorphisms on plasma-concentration to oral-dose ratios and CSF-concentration to plasma-concentration ratios of oral oxycodone were further analyzed. ABCB1 C3435T and G2677T/A polymorphisms were significantly associated with systemic doses of opioids before ITT, which coincided with the influences of ABCB1 C3435T and G2677T/A polymorphisms on the ratios of plasma-concentration to oral-dose. However, no significant difference was found in ratios of CSF-concentration to plasma-concentration among ABCB1 SNP genotypes. The present study provided the first evidence that ABCB1 C3435T and G2677T/A polymorphisms affect opioid requirement in cancer pain patients via altering transportation function of P-glycoprotein in the intestine, which will further expand our knowledge about pharmacokinetics of opioids and could contribute to the individualization of opioids use.
Topics: Humans; ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B; Male; Female; Analgesics, Opioid; Middle Aged; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Aged; Oxycodone; Cancer Pain; Adult; ATP Binding Cassette Transporter, Subfamily B, Member 1; Intestinal Mucosa; Genotype
PubMed: 38850645
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116897 -
Harm Reduction Journal Jun 2024As the opioid public health crisis evolves to include fentanyl and other potent synthetic opioids, more patients are admitted to the hospital with serious complications...
BACKGROUND
As the opioid public health crisis evolves to include fentanyl and other potent synthetic opioids, more patients are admitted to the hospital with serious complications of drug use and frequently require higher levels of care, including intensive care unit (ICU) admission, for acute and chronic conditions related to opioid use disorder (OUD). This patient population poses a unique challenge when managing sedation and ensuring adequate ventilation while intubated given their high opioid requirements. Starting a patient on medications such as buprenorphine may be difficult for inpatient providers unfamiliar with its use, which may lead to undertreatment of patients with OUD, prolonged mechanical ventilation and length of stay.
METHODS
We developed a 7-day buprenorphine low dose overlap initiation (LDOI) schedule for patients with OUD admitted to the ICU (Table 1). Buprenorphine tablets were split by pharmacists and placed into pre-made blister packs as a kit to be loaded into the automated medication dispensing machine for nursing to administer daily. An internal quality review validated the appropriate dosing of split-dose tablets. To simplify order entry and increase prescriber comfort with this new protocol, we generated an order set within our electronic health record software with prebuilt buprenorphine titration orders. This protocol was implemented alongside patient and healthcare team education and counseling on the LDOI process, with follow-up offered to all patients upon discharge.
RESULTS
Here we report a series of 6 ICU patients started on buprenorphine using the LDOI schedule with split buprenorphine tablets. None of the 6 patients experienced precipitated withdrawal upon buprenorphine initiation using the LDOI schedule, and 5/6 patients were successfully extubated during the buprenorphine initiation. Four of six patients had a decrease in daily morphine milligram equivalents, with 3 patients transitioning to buprenorphine alone.
CONCLUSION
Initiating buprenorphine via LDOI was found to be successful in the development of a protocol for critically ill patients with OUD. We examined LDOI of buprenorphine in intubated ICU patients and found no events of acute precipitated withdrawal. This protocol can be used as a guide for other institutions seeking to start critically ill patients on medication treatment for OUD during ICU admission.
Topics: Humans; Buprenorphine; Opioid-Related Disorders; Intensive Care Units; Male; Analgesics, Opioid; Female; Opiate Substitution Treatment; Adult; Middle Aged; Narcotic Antagonists; Intubation, Intratracheal
PubMed: 38849912
DOI: 10.1186/s12954-024-01028-4 -
Trials Jun 2024Obese patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) are particularly at risk of opioid-related side effects. To reduce patient exposure to opioids,...
The effect of pre-emptive oral pregabalin on opioid consumption in patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy with an analysis of intraoperative hemodynamic stability and quality of recovery: study protocol for a randomized, prospective, double-blind study.
BACKGROUND
Obese patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) are particularly at risk of opioid-related side effects. To reduce patient exposure to opioids, multimodal analgesia, which involves the use of drugs of different classes, may be utilized. One of the drugs under consideration is pregabalin. Despite an opioid-sparing potential, few studies assess the role of pregabalin as an element of multimodal analgesia in LSG. Considering the limited number and inconsistent results of available studies, we decided to conduct a randomized, prospective study on the effect of preemptive pregabalin administration in obese patients on opioid consumption, pain scores, the incidence of opioid side effects, and hemodynamical stability.
METHODS
The study is designed as a prospective randomized controlled trial with double-blinding. Randomization will be performed in a block with a parallel 1:1 allocation. The intervention will involve receiving a pregabalin 150 mg capsule 1-2 h before the surgery, whereas the control group will receive an identically looking placebo. The primary outcome measure will be total oxycodone consumption in the first 24 h following surgery. Secondary outcome measures will be pain severity assessed using the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) 1, 6, 12, and 24 h after surgery, postoperative sedation on the Ramsay scale, PONV impact scale, the incidence of desaturation episodes < 94%, and episodes of blurred vision at 1, 6, 12, and 24 h after surgery, intraoperative hemodynamic parameters such as heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean blood pressure (MBP), total fluid volume, and total ephedrine dose. Patient comfort will be additionally assessed using the QoR-40 questionnaire at discharge.
DISCUSSION
The study will explore the efficacy and safety of preemptive pregabalin in a dose of 150 mg as a co-analgesic used in multimodal analgesia for LSG. As studies on opioid-sparing regimes concern the safety of obese patients, we aim to contribute objective data with a relatively large study sample size. The result of the present clinical trial may support the reassessment of recommendations to use pregabalin in the studied population.
TRIAL REGISTRATION
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05804591. Registered on 07.04.2023.
Topics: Humans; Pregabalin; Double-Blind Method; Prospective Studies; Analgesics, Opioid; Gastrectomy; Pain, Postoperative; Laparoscopy; Hemodynamics; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Adult; Treatment Outcome; Pain Measurement; Administration, Oral; Analgesics; Middle Aged; Male; Time Factors; Female; Young Adult; Recovery of Function; Oxycodone
PubMed: 38849875
DOI: 10.1186/s13063-024-08225-3 -
JMIR Research Protocols Jun 2024Chronic pain affects tens of millions of US adults and continues to rise in prevalence. Nonpharmacologic behavioral pain treatments are greatly needed and yet are often...
BACKGROUND
Chronic pain affects tens of millions of US adults and continues to rise in prevalence. Nonpharmacologic behavioral pain treatments are greatly needed and yet are often inaccessible, particularly in settings where medication prescribing is prioritized.
OBJECTIVE
This study aims to test the feasibility of a live-instructor, web-based 1-session pain relief skills class in an underserved and potentially at-risk population: people with chronic pain prescribed methadone or buprenorphine either solely for pain or for comorbid opioid use disorder (OUD).
METHODS
This is a national, prospective, single-arm, uncontrolled feasibility trial. The trial is untethered from medical care; to enhance participants' willingness to join the study, no medical records or drug-monitoring records are accessed. At least 45 participants will be recruited from outpatient pain clinics and from an existing research database of individuals who have chronic pain and are taking methadone or buprenorphine. Patient-reported measures will be collected at 6 time points (baseline, immediately post treatment, 2 weeks, and months 1-3) via a web-based platform, paper, or phone formats to include individuals with limited internet or computer access and low literacy skills. At baseline, participants complete demographic questions and 13 study measures (Treatment Expectations, Body Pain Map, Medication Use, Pain Catastrophizing Scale [PCS], Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System [PROMIS] Measures, and Opioid Craving Scale). Immediately post treatment, a treatment satisfaction and acceptability measure is administered on a 0 (very dissatisfied) to 10 (completely satisfied) scale, with 3 of these items being the primary outcome (perceived usefulness, participant satisfaction, and likelihood of using the skills). At each remaining time point, the participants complete all study measures minus treatment expectations and satisfaction. Participants who do not have current OUD will be assessed for historical OUD, with presence of OUD (yes or no), and history of OUD (yes or no) reported separately. Feasibility threshold is set as an overall group treatment satisfaction rating of 8 of 10. In-depth qualitative interviews will be conducted with about 10 participants to obtain additional data on patient perceptions, satisfactions, needs, and wants. To assess preliminary efficacy, we will examine changes in pain catastrophizing, pain intensity, pain bothersomeness, sleep disturbance, pain interference, depression, anxiety, physical function, global impression of change, and opioid craving at 1 month post treatment.
RESULTS
This project opened to enrollment in September 2021 and completed the recruitment in October 2023. The data collection was completed in February 2024. Results are expected to be published in late 2024.
CONCLUSIONS
Results from this trial will inform the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of Empowered Relief in this population and will inform the design of a future randomized controlled trial testing web-based Empowered Relief in chronic pain and comorbid OUD.
TRIAL REGISTRATION
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05057988; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05057988.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID)
DERR1-10.2196/53784.
Topics: Humans; Buprenorphine; Chronic Pain; Methadone; Feasibility Studies; Prospective Studies; Male; Female; Analgesics, Opioid; Adult; Pain Management; Opiate Substitution Treatment; Internet-Based Intervention; Internet; Opioid-Related Disorders; Middle Aged
PubMed: 38843513
DOI: 10.2196/53784 -
Aging Jun 2024Morphine tolerance refers to gradual reduction in response to drug with continuous or repeated use of morphine, requiring higher doses to achieve same effect.
BACKGROUND
Morphine tolerance refers to gradual reduction in response to drug with continuous or repeated use of morphine, requiring higher doses to achieve same effect.
METHODS
The morphine tolerance dataset GSE7762 profiles, obtained from gene expression omnibus (GEO) database, were used to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Weighted Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (WGCNA) was applied to explore core modules of DEGs related to morphine tolerance. Core genes were input into Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD). Animal experiments were performed to validate role of Tsc22d3 in morphine tolerance and its relationship with ferroptosis-related pathway.
RESULTS
500 DEGs were identified. DEGs were primarily enriched in negative regulation of brain development, neuronal apoptosis processes, and neurosystem development. Core gene was identified as Tsc22d3. Tsc22d3 gene-associated miRNAs were mmu-miR-196b-5p and mmu-miR-196a-5p. Compared to Non-morphine tolerant group, Tsc22d3 expression was significantly upregulated in Morphine tolerant group. Tsc22d3 expression was upregulated in Morphine tolerant+Tsc22d3_OE, expression of HIF-1alpha, GSH, GPX4 in GPX4 ferroptosis-related pathway showed a more pronounced decrease. As Tsc22d3 expression was downregulated in Morphine tolerant+Tsc22d3_KO, expression of HIF-1alpha, GSH, GPX4 in GPX4 ferroptosis-related pathway exhibited a more pronounced increase. Upregulation of Tsc22d3 in Morphine tolerant+Tsc22d3_OE led to a more pronounced increase in expression of apoptosis proteins (P53, Caspase-3, Bax, SMAC, FAS). The expression of inflammatory factors (IL6, TNF-alpha, CXCL1, CXCL2) showed a more pronounced increase with upregulated Tsc22d3 expression in Morphine tolerant+Tsc22d3_OE.
CONCLUSIONS
Tsc22d3 is highly expressed in brain tissue of morphine-tolerant mice, activating ferroptosis pathway, enhancing apoptosis, promoting inflammatory responses in brain cells.
Topics: Animals; Ferroptosis; Morphine; Mice; Phospholipid Hydroperoxide Glutathione Peroxidase; Drug Tolerance; Male; MicroRNAs; Signal Transduction; Mice, Inbred C57BL
PubMed: 38843390
DOI: 10.18632/aging.205903