Chronic opioid use following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion surgery for degenerative cervical pathology

摘要: BACKGROUND CONTEXTAlthough prescribing opioid medication on a limited basis for postoperative pain control is common practice, few studies have focused on chronic opioid use following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF).PURPOSETo determine the prevalence of and risk factors for chronic opioid use following one and two-level ACDF for degenerative cervical pathology.DESIGNRetrospective cohort.PATIENT SAMPLEUsing an insurance claims database, we identified patients aged 18–64 who underwent one or two-level primary ACDF from 2010 to 2015 for degenerative cervical pathology.OUTCOME MEASURESOpioid prescription strength at various timepoints pre- and postoperatively and development of chronic postoperative opioid use.METHODSPrescription opioid use was examined during the following periods: 90 days before 7 days preceding surgery (preoperative), 6 days preceding …