Incidence, predictors of in-hospital postop opioid overdose

Editor's Note

Opioid overdose is a rare but potentially lethal complication after elective inpatient surgical procedures, and the incidence is increasing, this study finds.

Of 11,317,958 patients analyzed, 9,458 (0.1%) had a postoperative opioid overdose, and the frequency doubled during the study period (2001 to 2011) from 0.6 to 1.1 overdoses per 1000 cases.

Those with postoperative opioid overdoses died more frequently during hospitalization (1.7% vs 0.4%). A history of substance abuse was the strongest predictor of opioid overdose.

Postoperative monitoring and treatment safety interventions should be used to target high-risk patients and avoid this potentially fatal complication, the authors say.

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe national trends and outcomes of in-hospital postoperative opioid overdose (OD) and identify predictors of postoperative OD. Summary of Background Data: In 2000, the Joint Commission recommended making pain the 5th vital sign, increasing the focus ...