ArticleJournal of pain research2018
Efficacy of opioids versus placebo in chronic pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of enriched enrollment randomized withdrawal trials.
Article in Journal of pain research, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04313972 (IC PaIN Trial), which is not on this map. Cited by 39 papers, 1 of them a synthesis 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.
IC PaIN Trial: Interstitial Cystitis Pain Improvement With Naltrexone, the Effect of Low Dose Naltrexone on Symptoms and Pain of Patients With Interstitial Cystitis/Painful Bladder Syndrome a Randomized Placebo-controlled Prospective Trial
Who cites it
39 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 67 citations in OpenAlex.
- Rate and Risk Factors Associated With Prolonged Opioid Use After Surgery: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.JAMA network open · 2020Pooled it
- Methodological considerations for analyzing enriched enrolment randomized withdrawal trials.Clinics (Sao Paulo, Brazil) · 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
- Beyond statistical significance: Embracing minimal clinically important difference for better patient care.World journal of methodology · 2025Review
- Postmarketing Research for Opioid Abuse-Deterrent Formulations: A Narrative Review.Journal of pain research · 2025Review
- Initial opioid prescription characteristics and risk of opioid misuse, poisoning and dependence: retrospective cohort study.BMJ quality & safety · 2023Article
- The holistic effects of medical cannabis compared to opioids on pain experience in Finnish patients with chronic pain.Journal of cannabis research · 2023Article
- The Biology of Placebo and Nocebo Effects on Experimental and Chronic Pain: State of the Art.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Pharmacogenetic profiling and individualised therapy in the treatment of degenerative spinal conditions.Irish journal of medical science · 2023Review
- Optimizing and Accelerating the Development of Precision Pain Treatments for Chronic Pain: IMMPACT Review and Recommendations.The journal of pain · 2023Review
- Nurse-Led Telephone Follow-Up Intervention for Titrating and Tapering Opioids in Chronic Pain Patients - A Feasibility Study.Journal of pain research · 2023Article
- Chronic pain acceptance: Relations to opioid misuse and pain management motives among individuals with chronic low back pain.Addictive behaviors · 2023Article
- Opioids for chronic pain management in patients with dialysis-dependent kidney failure.Nature reviews. Nephrology · 2022Review
- Misinterpretation of the "Overdose Crisis" Continues to Fuel Misunderstanding of the Role of Prescription Opioids.Journal of pain research · 2022Article
- A candidate neuroimaging biomarker for detection of neurotransmission-related functional alterations and prediction of pharmacological analgesic response in chronic pain.Brain communications · 2022Article
- Study Design Characteristics and Endpoints for Enriched Enrollment Randomized Withdrawal Trials for Chronic Pain Patients: A Systematic Review.Journal of pain research · 2022Review
- An Investigation into Proteomic Constituents of Cerebrospinal Fluid in Patients with Chronic Peripheral Neuropathic Pain Medicated with Opioids- a Pilot Study.Journal of neuroimmune pharmacology : the official journal of the Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology · 2021Article
- Management of Chronic and Neuropathic Pain with 10 kHz Spinal Cord Stimulation Technology: Summary of Findings from Preclinical and Clinical Studies.Biomedicines · 2021Review
- Efficacy and Safety of 10 kHz Spinal Cord Stimulation for the Treatment of Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis of Real-World Retrospective Studies.Biomedicines · 2021Review
- Tapentadol and Oxycodone/Naloxone Prescribing Patterns in Primary Health Care in Catalonia, Spain: A Cross-Sectional Study.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionOpioids have been used for millennia for the treatment of pain. However, the long-term efficacy of opioids to treat chronic non-cancer pain continues to be debated. To evaluate opioids' efficacy in chronic non-cancer pain, we performed a meta-analysis of published clinical trials for μ-opioid receptor agonists performed for US Food and Drug Administration approval.
methodsMEDLINE and Cochrane trial register were searched for enriched enrollment randomized withdrawal studies (before June 2016). Selection criteria included: adults, ≥10 subjects per arm, any chronic pain condition, double-blind treatment period lasting ≥12 weeks, and all μ-agonist opioids approved in the USA.
resultsFifteen studies met criteria. Opioid efficacy was statistically significant (
conclusionOpioids are efficacious in the treatment of chronic non-cancer pain for up to 3 months in randomized controlled trials. This should be considered, alongside data on opioid safety, in the use of opioids for the treatment of chronic pain.
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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.