Patient and Provider Acceptability of a Patient Preauthorized Concealed Opioid Reduction

Area of Science:

• Pain Management
• Clinical Pharmacology
• Patient Care

Background:

• Limited research exists on optimal opioid tapering strategies, creating clinical and ethical challenges.
• Previous studies suggest concealed opioid reduction may enhance pain relief and minimize negative expectations.
• This study addresses the need to understand patient and provider acceptance of concealed opioid tapering for chronic pain.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate patient and provider acceptance of concealed opioid reduction methods for chronic pain management.
• To assess attitudes towards a hypothetical clinical trial comparing concealed versus standard opioid tapering.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional survey was administered using REDcap to 74 patients and 49 providers.
• Participants completed a validated questionnaire based on two hypothetical clinical trials.
• The trials compared preauthorized concealed opioid reduction versus standard tapering for chronic pain.

Main Results:

• Both patients and providers demonstrated positive attitudes towards concealed opioid reduction.
• Over 60% of surveyed patients and providers found the hypothetical trial beneficial for reducing pain, side effects, and withdrawal.
• A significant majority of patients (61%) and providers (77.6%) acknowledged potential differences in pain relief between concealed and standard tapering groups.

Conclusions:

• Patients and providers recognize the potential benefits of concealed opioid reduction.
• Findings support the initiation of randomized controlled trials comparing concealed and overt opioid tapering.
• Further research is necessary to explore attitude discrepancies between research and clinical settings and to evaluate acceptability post-trial participation.