Two studies from the VA (one from Portland!) found what we’ve suspected for a long time: opiates just don’t work for long-term pain control. And they can lead to serious addiction problems.
In these studies, patients who received over-the-counter pain relief or massage reported reported the same or even less pain than those receiving opiates. I was happy to see the Portland study included massage for pain relief, and I would love to see acupuncture included, too.
It’s time to shift to treating the root of pain rather than prescribing addictive drugs for the symptoms.
Portland VA study says that patients have same long-term pain with or without opioids
