Patient-Directed Postoperative Opioid Prescribing for Gynecologic Surgery

January 29, 2021 updated by: Johnny Yi, Mayo Clinic

We would like to evaluate and optimize opioid prescribing after minimally invasive hysterectomy. Currently, our standard prescribing is 150 oral morphine equivalents. However, recent studies show that half of the opioids prescribed are not used. We would like to include the patient in the decision making of the opioid prescribing.

We have designed a randomized controlled trial to prescribe standard (150 oral morphine equivalents) or patient directed (less than or equal to 150 oral morphine equivalents) for pain control.

We hypothesize that with patient input, there will be a higher utilization of the opioids prescribed. Also, we anticipate a lower number of opioids used overall.

This study will help us optimize opioid prescribe and evaluate whether patient input can help in this important measure.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

There is an emphasis in patient centered care in medicine and part of this effort has evaluated the success of shared decision making in the care of the patient. Currently, there is strong research and clinical emphasis trying to determine how, as surgeons, we can assist in minimizing the misuse of opioid medications. Several studies have shown significant over-prescribing and under-utilizing of the pain medications that are prescribed to patients after surgery. One such study by As-Sanie et al showed that about half of medications were utilized for pain after surgery, with typically 200 oral morphine equivalents prescribed.

A recent prospective cohort study by Prabhu et al showed that shared decision making in the prescription of narcotic pain medications after cesarean section decreased opioid use without impacting patient satisfaction.

We propose a randomized controlled trial evaluating the impact of shared decision making in the prescribing of pain medications after minimally invasive gynecologic surgery. For adult female patients who are undergoing minimally invasive hysterectomy, we will randomize them to either standard care or patient directed treatment. Our standard arm will receive 150 oral morphine equivalents, or 30 tablets of oxycodone, whereas our patient directed arm will receive a prescription with as many pills is determined after discussion with the patient.

We hope to contribute to identifying the optimized opioid prescription for post surgical patients.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

65

Phase

  • Phase 2
  • Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Arizona
      • Scottsdale, Arizona, United States, 85259
        • Mayo Clinic in Arizona

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion criteria

  • Female patients >18 years old
  • Ability to provide informed consent
  • Planned minimally invasive hysterectomy with the Department of Gynecology o Concomitant minimally invasive surgeries performed by Gynecology will be allowed

Exclusion criteria

  • Non-English speaking
  • Combined surgical cases with other surgical departments
  • Planned laparotomy
  • Surgery planned to last >4 hours
  • Postoperative hospitalization planned for >7 days
  • Planned use of oral opioids other than oxycodone postoperatively
  • Pre-existing chronic pain conditions including: chronic pelvic pain, migraines, temporomandibular joint dysfunction syndrome, fibromyalgia, and interstitial cystitis
  • Preoperative diagnosis of pelvic pain
  • Chronic preoperative opioid use
  • History of or current diagnosis of narcotic or alcohol dependence

    o Screening question asked at preoperative appointment: Have you or are you currently dependent on narcotic medications or alcohol?

  • Desire for more opioids than standard therapy
  • Postoperative decision of surgeon to prescribed more than standard therapy
  • Allergy or contraindication to taking opioids, ibuprofen, or acetaminophen

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Standard of Care
Subjects will be prescribed the standard amount of opioids that are typically prescribed by our practice after surgery. Oxycodone 5mg 1-2 tablets every 4 hours as needed for pain. 30 tablets will be provided.
Oxycodone 5mg 1-2 tablets every 4 hours as needed for pain. 30 tablets will be provided.
Experimental: Patient Directed Care
Subject directed arm will be prescribed the number of opioids that the patient decides to be appropriate after discussion with the surgeon. This can be as low as 0 pills and as much as 30 pills as described in the standard care.
Oxycodone 5mg amount ranging from 0 tablets to as much as 30 tablets as described in the standard of care.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
# of Opioid Pills Consumed
Time Frame: 6 weeks postop
Percent utilization of opioids consumed (consumed/prescribed)
6 weeks postop

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Opioid Pills Prescribed
Time Frame: preoperative visit
Number of opioids prescribed
preoperative visit
Patient Satisfaction
Time Frame: 6 weeks post-operative
Patients were asked if they were satisfied with the # of oxycodone pills prescribed.
6 weeks post-operative

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Johnny Yi, Mayo Clinic

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

January 15, 2019

Primary Completion (Actual)

April 15, 2020

Study Completion (Actual)

April 15, 2020

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 12, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 12, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

January 15, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 21, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 29, 2021

Last Verified

January 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 18-004216

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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