• The Korean Journal of Pain
• /
• 제32권4호
• /
• pp.243-244
• /
• 2019

• The Korean Journal of Pain
• /
• 제37권1호
• /
• pp.41-50
• /
• 2024

Background: Recognizing the seriousness of the misuse and abuse of medical narcotics, the South Korean government introduced the world's first narcotic management system, the Narcotics Information Management System (NIMS). This study aimed to explore the recent one-year opioid prescribing patterns in South Korea using the NIMS database. Methods: This study analyzed opioid prescription records in South Korea for the year 2022, utilizing the dispensing/administration dataset provided by NIMS. Public data from the Korean Statistical Information Service were also utilized to explore prescription trends over the past four years. The examination covered 16 different opioid analgesics, assessed by the total number of units prescribed based on routes of administration, type of institutions, and patients' sex and age group. Additionally, the disposal rate for each ingredient was computed. Results: In total, 206,941 records of 87,792,968 opioid analgesic units were analyzed. Recently, the overall quantity of prescribed opioid analgesic units has remained relatively stable. The most prescribed ingredient was oral oxycodone, followed by tapentadol and sublingual fentanyl. Tertiary hospitals had the highest number of dispensed units (49.4%), followed by community pharmacies (40.2%). The highest number of prescribed units was attributed to male patients in their 60s. The disposal rates of the oral and transdermal formulations were less than 0.1%. Conclusions: Opioid prescription in South Korea features a high proportion of oral formulations, tertiary hospital administration, pharmacy dispensing, and elderly patients. Sustained education and surveillance of patients and healthcare providers is required.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제48권4호
• /
• pp.361-365
• /
• 2021

Background Pain in the postoperative body contouring patient has traditionally been managed with narcotic medication. In an effort to minimize side effects and prevent addiction, plastic surgeons are searching for novel ways to provide adequate analgesia, one of which is nerve blocks. This study was conducted with a meta-analysis that evaluates the efficacy of these blocks for patients who undergo breast surgery. Methods A search of the PubMed/MEDLINE database for articles including the terms "post-operative analgesia" OR "postoperative pain management" AND "in plastic surgery" OR "in cosmetic surgery" OR "in elective surgery" in February 2019 generated five studies on elective breast augmentation and reduction mammoplasty that reported pain scores and quantities of opioids consumed. Independent samples t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, and a random effects model were implemented for evaluation. Results A total of 317 patients were identified as having undergone body contouring of the breast, about half of which received a nerve block. Pain scores on a 1-10 scale and opioid dose-equivalents were calculated. Those who were blocked had an average score of 2.40 compared to 3.64 for those who did not (P<0.001), and required an average of 5.20 less narcotic doses (P<0.001). Pain relief following subpectoral augmentation was best achieved with type-II blocks as opposed to type-I and type-II with serratus plane (P<0.001). Conclusions The opioid epidemic has extended to all surgical specialties. Implementation of a nerve block seems to be an efficacious and cost-effective mechanism to not only help with post-operative pain, but also lower the need for narcotics, especially in subpectoral augmentation.