Evaluation of an opioid restrictive pain management initiative in adult kidney transplant recipients

Abstract

Purpose: Evidence to guide opioid utilization following kidney transplantation is lacking. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the implementation of an opioid restrictive post-operative pain management protocol in adult kidney transplant recipients. Methods: We analyzed patients who underwent kidney transplant between 1/1/2017 to 8/15/2018. A standardized, opioid restrictive pain management protocol was implemented in February 2018. The primary outcome was quantity of opioid tablets prescribed at discharge. Secondary outcomes included amount of opioid prescribed within first 30 days, number of patient calls for pain, and opioid prescription in electronic medical record (EMR) at 90 days and 1 year. Results: After implementation, significantly fewer opioid tablets were prescribed at discharge (4 vs. 60 tablets, p