Opioid Emergencies: How Medication for Chronic Pain Can Backfire

Many people live with chronic pain each day. While prescription opioid pain medications are an important part of treatment, life threatening side-effects can sometimes occur, even for those who take their opioids as directed.

Opioid emergencies, such as accidental overdose, are a growing public health epidemic in the United States.

But, conversations between healthcare providers, patients, and their loved ones about the safe use of prescription opioid pain medications can be difficult to start.

In fact, opioid emergencies such as accidental overdose have reached epidemic proportions in the U.S. Of the more than 80 percent of the deaths that occur from opioid overdose, on average, 44 per day are unintentional.

Can an opioid emergency still occur even if opioids are taken as directed?

Dr. Anita Gupta shares why opioids can be dangerous medications and how you can carefully monitor opioid medications.