SynthesisJournal of the American Geriatrics Society2010
Outcomes associated with opioid use in the treatment of chronic noncancer pain in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 2010. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 104 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Patient Activation to Address Chronic Pain and Opioid Management in Primary Care
A Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Three-Arm Trial Examining Sublingual Cannabinoid Tablets for the Treatment of Pain From Osteoarthritis of the Knee.
Who cites it
104 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 227 citations in OpenAlex.
- Multimorbidity and analgesic-related harms: a systematic review.British journal of anaesthesia · 2025Pooled it
- Opioid Prescribing Patterns and Complications in the Dermatology Medicare Population.JAMA dermatology · 2018Pooled it
- Opioids for agitation in dementia.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2015Pooled it
- Analgesic efficacy of opioids in chronic pain: recent meta-analyses.British journal of pharmacology · 2015Pooled it
- The efficacy of duloxetine, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and opioids in osteoarthritis: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2014Pooled it
- Opioid prescribing: a systematic review and critical appraisal of guidelines for chronic pain.Annals of internal medicine · 2014Pooled it
- Ketamine administration for acute painful sickle cell crisis: A randomized controlled trial.Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine · 2022Trial
- Patients as collaborators: using focus groups and feedback sessions to develop an interactive, web-based self-management intervention for chronic pain.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2013Trial
- Opioid Use in Older Adults with Cancer Pain Admitted to an Acute Palliative Care Unit: Does Age Matter? A Secondary Analysis.Drugs & aging · 2026Article
- French National Guidelines for the Appropriate Use of Opioids: Analgesia, Opioid Use Disorder, and Overdose Prevention-Part 1: Methodology and Pain Management.Pain and therapy · 2026Article
- Chronic Pain and Opioids in the Elderly: Treating the Brain, Not Just the Body.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026Review
- Article
- Treatment characteristics and safety profiles of Belbuca®, buprenorphine patch, and oral schedule II opioids among chronic low back pain patients without a positive history of opioid-use disorder: a retrospective US commercial claims analysis.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Intraarticular resiniferatoxin, a potent TRPV1 agonist, for treatment of osteoarthritic pain.Pain management · 2025Review
- Comparison between femoral nerve block and pericapsular nerve group block as preemptive analgesia in geriatric intertrochanteric fractures: A prospective randomised controlled clinical trial.Journal of orthopaedics · 2025Article
- Comparative risk of severe constipation in patients treated with opioids for non-cancer pain: a retrospective cohort study in Northwest England.BMC medicine · 2025Article
- Opioids in geriatric units in 14 Belgian hospitals: prevalence, dosage and associated factors.Annals of medicine · 2024Article
- Serious treatment-emergent adverse events in chronic low back pain patients treated with buprenorphine or oral opioids: a retrospective commercial claims analysis.Journal of comparative effectiveness research · 2024Article
- Opioids in Treatment of Refractory Dyspnea in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Yes, No or Maybe.Journal of personalized medicine · 2024Review
- Investigating the Association of Pain Intensity and Health Status among Older US Adults with Pain Who Used Opioids in 2020 Using the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
44 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
This systematic review summarizes existing evidence regarding the efficacy, safety, and abuse and misuse potential of opioids as treatment for chronic noncancer pain in older adults. Multiple databases were searched to identify relevant studies published in English (1/1/80-7/1/09) with a mean study population age of 60 and older. Forty-three articles were identified and retained for review (40 reported safety and efficacy data, the remaining 3 reported misuse or abuse outcome data). The weighted mean subject age was 64.1 (mean age range 60-73). Studies enrolled patients with osteoarthritis (70%), neuropathic pain (13%), and other pain-producing disorders (17%). The mean duration of treatment studies was 4 weeks (range 1.5-156 weeks), and only five (12%) lasted longer than 12 weeks. In meta-analyses, effect sizes were -0.557 (P<.001) for pain reduction, -0.432 (P<.001) for physical disability reduction, and 0.859 (P=.31) for improved sleep. The effect size for the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Health Survey was 0.191 (P=.17) for the physical component score and -0.220 (P=.04) for the mental component score. Adults aged 65 and older were as likely as those younger than 65 to benefit from treatment. Common adverse events included constipation (median frequency of occurrence 30%), nausea (28%), and dizziness (22%) and prompted opioid discontinuation in 25% of cases. Abuse and misuse behaviors were negatively associated with older age. In older adults with chronic pain and no significant comorbidity, short-term use of opioids is associated with reduction in pain intensity and better physical functioning but poorer mental health functioning. The long-term safety, efficacy, and abuse potential of this treatment practice in diverse populations of older persons remain to be determined.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.