Patient/Surgical Risk Factors for Chronic Pain and Opioid Dependency

Post operative painPain is a primary concern for patients undergoing surgery. Acute post-surgical pain can lead to the development of chronic post-surgical painChronic post-surgical pain. While opioidsOpioids were, at one point, overwhelmingly and exclusively utilized in the treatment of acute painAcute pain, it is now recognized that exposure to opioidsOpioids may increase the riskRisks of opioid dependenceOpioid dependence and opioid use disorderOpioid use disorder. Multimodal analgesiaMultimodal analgesia now represents the mainstay of analgesicAnalgesics treatment that seems to address acute surgical pain, chronic post-surgical pain, and minimize the development of opioid dependenceOpioid dependence. In this chapter, we discuss development riskRisks factors, prevention strategies, and the treatment of chronic postsurgical pain while considering how pain managementPain management interventions might decrease the riskRisks of opioid dependenceOpioid dependence/opioid use disorderOpioid use disorder.