ArticlePain2025
Standardizing research methods for opioid dose comparison: the NIH HEAL morphine milligram equivalent calculator.
Article in Pain, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 2 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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Comparative Effectiveness of Fascial Plane Blocks for Postoperative Analgesia in Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Obesity surgery · 2026Pooled it
- Preoperative Nonopioid Analgesia Reduces Postoperative Opioid Consumption After Arthroscopic Surgery: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.The American journal of sports medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Virtual Reality for the Management of Postoperative Pain and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents Undergoing Nuss Repair of Pectus Excavatum: Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR perioperative medicine · 2026Trial
- IMpact of PerioperAtive KeTamine on Enhanced Recovery After abdominal Surgery (IMPAKT ERAS): a pragmatic randomised single-cluster trial.British journal of anaesthesia · 2025Trial
- Sex-related differences in pain following posterior spinal fusion for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: a retrospective cohort study.Spine deformity · 2026Article
- Article
- Opioid Dispensing Volume and Per-Patient Intensity in Sickle Cell Disease.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Esketamine during anesthesia induction improves early postoperative sleep quality in female patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery: A randomized trial.Pakistan journal of medical sciences · 2026Article
- Early Enteral Nutrition After Paediatric Ostomy Closure (EPOC): A Protocol for a Multicentre, Prospective Randomised Controlled Trial.Journal of paediatrics and child health · 2026Article
- Nationwide Trends in Opioid Consumption in Costa Rica, 2017-2024: Implications for Regulatory Policy and Public Health.Pharmacoepidemiology and drug safety · 2026Article
- Adolescent prefrontal and amygdala molecular signatures of perinatal morphine versus buprenorphine exposure in mice.Neurotoxicology · 2026Article
- The efficacy and safety of short-acting, full agonist opioids for symptom management of opioid withdrawal.Addictive behaviors reports · 2026Review
- Intraoperative Methadone for Post-craniotomy Pain Control: A Matched Cohort Exploratory Framework Study.Cureus · 2026Article
- Extending the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) Common Data Model for Critical Care Medicine: A Framework for Standardizing Complex ICU Data Using the Society of Critical Care Medicine's Critical Care Data Dictionary (C2D2).Critical care medicine · 2026Article
- Peripheral Nerve Blocks Following Open Hepatectomy: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.Journal of pain research · 2026Review
- A Survey of Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviours of Canadian Family Physicians in Response to the Canadian Guideline on Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Non-cancer Pain.Canadian journal of pain = Revue canadienne de la douleur · 2026Article
- Comparison of erector spinae plane block versus quadratus lumborum block for post-caesarean analgesia: Systematic review, meta-analysis, and trial sequential analysis.Indian journal of anaesthesia · 2026Article
- Effect of Liposomal Bupivacaine in Peripheral Nerve Block Following Thoracoscopic Lung Surgery: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of pain research · 2026Review
- Billions Spent, Few Saved: Rethinking National Institutes of Health HEAL Initiative in Light of Dopaminergic Alternatives to the Opioid Trap.International journal of spine surgery · 2025Article
- Opioid dependence in patients with pain in chronic pancreatitis an emerging problem.Indian journal of gastroenterology : official journal of the Indian Society of Gastroenterology · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
abstractWe developed the National Institutes of Health helping to end addiction long-term initiative morphine milligram equivalent (MME) calculator to standardize MME calculations across pain research studies, addressing a critical barrier to effective research synthesis and meta-analysis. The tool provides evidence-based mapping factors for 29 opioids through a research electronic data capture-based calculator and companion Web site ( research-mme.wakehealth.edu ). Development involved systematic evidence evaluation of literature from 1949 to March 2024, following PRISMA guidelines. From an initial screening of over 170,050 articles, we identified 24 studies providing evidence for conversion factors. The calculator incorporates 4 standardized time-window calculation methods aligned with current research approaches and includes traditional full agonists, partial agonists, and mixed-mechanism agents. Using modified GRADE methodology, we evaluated evidence quality for each conversion factor, documenting levels from high-quality randomized controlled trials to pharmacokinetic extrapolation. Our tool replicates most existing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conversion factors while expanding coverage to 7 additional opioids and 6 formulations not included in the 2022 CDC conversion table. The calculator features options to analyze results with or without buprenorphine, accommodating its emerging role in pain research. This standardized framework enables researchers to map opioid doses using consistent, evidence-based ratios and harmonize data collection across research networks. While the tool represents a significant advance in standardizing MME calculations for research, limitations in the underlying evidence base highlight the need for continued validation through clinical research.
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.