Acupuncture Reduces Pain and Opioid Use for Total Knee Replacement Surgery Patients

AHA Publisher — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 07:00:31 +0000

American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) via Newswise – SAN DIEGO – Patients who have acupuncture during total knee replacement surgery report less pain and need far fewer opioids to manage their discomfort, according to a study being presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2021 annual meeting. Results of the study showed that 65% of patients who received acupuncture during surgery achieved a low-dose or opioid-free postoperative experience, compared to 9% of patients outside of the study. “Total knee replacements are one of the most common operative procedures in the United States and often very painful, so there’s a great need to explore non-opioid pain relief techniques for this type of surgery,” said Stephanie Cheng, M.D., DABMA, lead author of the study and assistant attending anesthesiologist at the Hospital for Special Surgery and assistant professor of clinical anesthesiology at Weill Cornell Medicine, both located in New York City. “Acupuncture is extremely safe and can help reduce pain with few unwanted side effects, but it has not been well researched as part of surgical anesthesia.”The study included 41 patients undergoing primary total knee replacement at the Hospital for Special Surgery. All patients received the institution’s standard opioid-sparing multimodal analgesic protocol, with the addition of electroacupuncture — a modified form of traditional acupuncture that applies a small electric current to thin needles that are inserted at known acupuncture points on the body. The acupuncture was administered during surgery by Dr. Cheng, who is board-certified in medical acupuncture, to eight specific points in the ear to provide targeted pain relief in the knee. With the addition of acupuncture, the majority of patients had a significant reduction in postoperative opioid use, compared to historical controls. Sixty-five percent of patients maintained a low-dose opioid regimen of 15 oxycodone pills or less (57.5%) or remained completely opioid-free (7.5%) from induction of anesthesia to 30 days after surgery. Historically, only 9% of patients outside of the study maintained a low-dose or opioid-free regimen post-surgery. All patients studied discontinued opioid use after 30 days following surgery. “Our study shows that if a trained medical acupuncturist is available to perform acupuncture in the operating room, it can help patients with postoperative pain recovery,” said Dr. Cheng. “Most studies fail to incorporate nontraditional techniques, such as acupuncture, to help decrease the dependance on opioid medications for postoperative pain control.” In the context of the opioid epidemic, achieving low-dose perioperative opioid consumption is critical to reducing the risk of long-term opioid use in patients. With acupuncture being commonly used outside of the hospital as an effective therapy for pain management and treatment for a range of health issues and symptoms, it’s time to consider its benefits inside the hospital as well, Dr. Cheng said. “Additional research is needed to further define acupuncture’s effects and encourage its use in all aspects of disease treatment.” To read the original article click here.

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Ohio County Sees ‘Catastrophic’ Rise in Opioid Deaths, Coroner Says COVID Is Culprit

AHA Publisher — Tue, 20 Oct 2020 07:00:30 +0000

Andrea Morris via CBN News – The coronavirus pandemic has impacted everyone in some way after descending upon civilization with full force, but the mental health crisis it has created has also been deadly. Franklin County, Ohio has seen a sharp increase in deaths from overdose since the start of COVID-19, prompting the local coroner to inform residents of these grim facts. Dr. Anahi Ortiz said the opioid epidemic affecting Franklin County has been “catastrophic” and it’s directly connected with the coronavirus. “By the first six months of 2020, current data shows that we saw a 73.4 percent increase in overdose fatalities in Franklin County,” Dr. Ortiz pointed out. “I think the anxiety and depression that has come from COVID-19 has exacerbated addiction in a number of ways,” she added. “Thinking about families who already have the anxiety and isolation from COVID-19 and their loved one has just died from addiction, that’s just a tremendous burden to bear.” Dr. Ortiz explained that 85% of the overdose deaths were fentanyl-related. “Then you have folks who perhaps because they became unemployed, etc., may have not been able to buy their usual, and then when they do get some money, they start using again, and they start at the same doses they were taking previously, and that’s when they die,” Ortiz added. She noted that Franklin County has launched training events where locals learn how to use an opioid-reversal medication called Narcan as officials have worked to help residents receive treatment and resources. Ultimately, patients must understand the associated risks when taking opioid-related medications, and that knowledge could help prevent some addiction before it begins. CBN News previously reported on other mental instabilities linked to the coronavirus pandemic, such as the rise in suicide, anxiety, and depression. In August, the CDC released a report revealing that 25.5 percent of Americans age 18 to 24 had seriously considered suicide with the past 30 days. For adults ages 25 to 44, that percentage was 16 percent. Anxiety and depression among younger adults, women, and the poor have been the highest. Data collected by the Census Bureau showed that a third of Americans were exhibiting signs of anxiety, depression, or both. If you’re dealing with mental health issues during the pandemic like suicidal thoughts, addiction, and depression, support groups and helplines are available to assist you. CBNtelephone counselors are available to pray with you at 1-800-700-7000. The Suicide Prevention Hotline can be reached by calling 1-800-273-8255. The National Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health America can be contacted by clicking here. To read the original article click here. For more articles from CBN News click here.

The post Ohio County Sees ‘Catastrophic’ Rise in Opioid Deaths, Coroner Says COVID Is Culprit appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.

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Acupuncture Reduces Pain and Opioid Use for Total Knee Replacement Surgery Patients

Ohio County Sees ‘Catastrophic’ Rise in Opioid Deaths, Coroner Says COVID Is Culprit