AAP Update

Chronic Pain and Opioid Crisis

By Robert Wilder, MD, PhD, FAAP and Nicha Kandiah, MD

AAP: PediaLink® Online Course
Before we begin to explore the management of chronic pain, it is critical that we first recognize that opioids have become a crisis across the country. Since the turn of the century, opioid prescriptions have skyrocketed, largely because of increased use of opioids in the management of chronic, non-cancer pain. This emerging problem was first identified in the late 1990s and, although it has started to taper off somewhat, each year opioids are responsible for millions of emergency room visits, thousands of deaths, and billions of dollars of costs in the US economy.
 
Learning Objectives

• Learner should be able to understand what chronic pain is, and understand the types of chronic pain you’re likely to see in your practice.
• Learner should be able to understand the goals and the approach to the treatment of chronic pain.
• Learner should be able to understand the role of opioids in the treatment of chronic pain and CDC recommendations for opioid therapy in the chronic pain population.

The course is free for AAP members as well as non-AAP members.

To assess the course, visit: http://shop.aap.org/chronic-pain-and-the-opioid-crisis/