The Impact of Provider Communication on Prescription Opioid Use: A Case Report.

Over the past few decades, prescription opioids have greatly impacted our society, providing much needed relief for those in severe pain while simultaneously leading many to develop opioid use disorder. Although the scientific community has made great progress in combating this epidemic, there is still much work to be done. Physicians play a crucial role in this fight, as they are the ones in direct contact with patients. Proper and thorough communication is absolutely necessary when treating patients who are prescribed opioids. In this piece, we describe the case of a 62-year-old woman who experienced debilitating, cyclic opioid withdrawals after years of inappropriate prescription opioid use and how much of her suffering could have been avoided. Her case highlights the importance of patient-provider communication and the willingness of many patients to discontinue opioids.

Ultrasound-Guided Compared With Non-Ultrasound-Guided Placement of Immediate Postpartum Intrauterine Contraceptive Devices.

Immediate postpartum placement of intrauterine devices (IUDs) can help reduce unintended short-interval pregnancy; however, the rate of spontaneous device expulsion is increased. The objective of this study is to evaluate the risk of expulsion with ultrasound-guided placement of immediate postpartum IUDs. Retrospective review of all patients receiving immediate postpartum IUDs after vaginal delivery at Prisma Health Richland Hospital from 2018 to 2020 was performed. Outcomes were available for 78 patients in the ultrasound-guided cohort and for 226 in the control cohort. The expulsion rate was 15.4% (95% CI 8.2-25.3%) for the ultrasound-guided cohort and 14.2% (95% CI 9.9-19.4%) for the control cohort. Our data suggest that using ultrasonography to guide placement of IUDs immediately after vaginal delivery is not associated with the risk of expulsion.