Diagnosing opioid addiction in people with chronic pain requires a fully validated alternative to DSM-5.
Over the past two decades, a steep rise in the number of opioids dispensed for pain treatment has been accompanied by a dramatic rise in overdose deaths in the United States. In 2016, up to 32 000 deaths reportedly involved prescription opioids. Besides that, the economic burden of prescription opioid overdose exceeds $78bn (£59bn; €67bn) annually.
Despite all the evidence of harm, it remains unclear exactly how to determine if a patient with chronic pain has opioid addiction. What criteria should serve as a gold standard in making a diagnosis of opioid use disorder (OUD) in this context? This is an important gap in the literature. It hinders both evidence based care and research on the links between prescription opioids and OUD. Therefore, we discuss the limitations of diagnosing OUD in people with chronic pain, and make several recommendations for further research.
Diagnosing opioid addiction in people with chronic pain
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5) provides a widely used set of diagnostic criteria for OUD. But these criteria do not always apply to patients who are prescribed opioids for chronic pain. According to DSM-5, if a patient presents with 2 out of 9 specific symptoms, it may indicate …
Diagnosing opioid addiction in people with chronic pain