Case Report: Buprenorphine for Palliation in a Patient with End Stage Renal Disease

End stage renal disease (ESRD) is known to be associated with pain, malaise and decreased quality of life. Pain management in the setting of dialysis is particularly challenging from a pharmacologic standpoint given altered pharmacokinetics of pain medications. Buprenorphine, a partial mu opioid receptor agonist, demonstrates superior safety profile compared to full mu opioid receptor agonists. In this case report, we demonstrated buprenorphine buccal film (Belbuca) as a safe and effective opioid treatment option for pain palliation in a dialysis dependent patient. Future studies may be warranted with larger sample size and longer follow up period to study the effect of buprenorphine in the setting of hemodialysis and non-dialysis dependent ESRD population.