An Evaluation of Docusate Monotherapy and the Prevention of Opioid-Induced Constipation after Surgery.

Our purpose was to determine if docusate monotherapy is effective in preventing opioid-induced constipation in patients receiving opioids following orthopedic surgery. Our single-center, retrospective, cohort study evaluated 212 orthopedic patients who received opioids between May 1, 2018, and December 31, 2018. All patients were aged 18 years and older, hospitalized for more than 48 hours, and received docusate for primary prevention of constipation post-operatively. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients taking opioid medications who experienced docusate failure, defined as patients who did not have a bowel movement within 5 days of starting docusate after surgery or those patients who required the use of additional laxative agents to produce a bowel movement. After excluding patients which did not meet the inclusion criteria, 79.9% (n = 159/199) experienced docusate treatment failure. Of these patients, 42.8% (68/159) failed to have a bowel movement or had a bowel movement greater than 5 days post-surgery. The remaining 57.2% (91/159) of patients required an additional laxative to produce a bowel movement. Docusate monotherapy was not effective in preventing constipation in patients receiving opioids following elective orthopedic surgery. Based on these findings, we propose utilization of stimulant bowel products with proven efficacy as primary therapy after surgery to prevent constipation. Future multi-centered, randomized controlled trials are necessary to evaluate the differences in efficacy and safety between common bowel regimens in treating opioid-induced constipation in patients who undergo elective orthopedic surgery.

Impact of a pharmacist-directed pain management service on inpatient opioid use, pain control, and patient safety.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the impact of a pharmacy-directed pain management service (PPMS) designed to optimize analgesic pharmacotherapy, minimize adverse events, and improve patients' experience of pain management. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted to evaluate the PPMS consisting of 3 dedicated pain management clinical pharmacists who perform both consult-based and stewardship functions. Multiple measures of opioid use and associated patient satisfaction outcomes during 3-year periods before and after implementation of the PPMS were compared. RESULTS: Significant decreases in use of institutionally defined high-risk opioid medications (e.g., parenteral hydromorphone, fentanyl, transdermal fentanyl patches), a decrease in total institutional opioid use, increased coanalgesic and adjunctive medication use, and a decrease in rapid response team (RRT) and code blue events associated with opioid-induced oversedation were seen after service implementation. Despite decreased opioid use, available patient satisfaction data suggested ongoing improvement in associated Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey domains. CONCLUSION: Our data highlights the impact of a pharmacy directed pain management service on institutional opioid use with available data suggesting improved patient satisfaction scores and indirect cost savings. Despite decreased opioid use, available patient satisfaction data suggested ongoing improvement in associated HCAHPS survey pain management domains.