FDA/DEA/PDMP/UDT: alphabet soup or sensible and integrated risk management?

Area of Science:

• Clinical Pharmacology
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP) and urine drug testing (UDT) are integral components of risk management strategies for controlled substance prescribing.
• These tools aim to enhance clinical decision-making for healthcare providers.

Discussion:

• This commentary compares states with and without active PDMPs, examining their impact on UDT findings.
• The discussion highlights the unique contributions of both PDMP and UDT in assessing patient risk.

Key Insights:

• Relying solely on PDMP may result in overlooking significant problematic or aberrant behaviors.
• Integrating UDT with PDMP provides a more complete risk assessment profile.
• Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is a key analytical method for UDT.

Outlook:

• Further research is needed to optimize the combined use of PDMP and UDT for safer controlled substance prescribing.
• Developing standardized guidelines for integrating these tools can improve patient safety and treatment outcomes.