Consequences of dextropropoxyphene market withdrawal in elderly patients with chronic pain.

OBJECTIVE

Describe the consequences of dextropropoxyphene (DXP) market withdrawal on analgesic prescriptions and on the quality of therapeutic management of chronic pain.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

From a cohort of non-institutionalised elderly patients with chronic pain recruited by general practitioners, we selected patients who were treated with DXP daily for at least 6 months just prior to DXP market withdrawal and who had an evaluation of pain and its impact on daily activities before and after DXP withdrawal.

RESULTS

One hundred three patients took DXP daily for chronic pain. Immediately after DXP market withdrawal, 42 (40.8%), 55 (53.4%) and 3 (2.9%) patients were treated with step 1, 2 and 3 analgesics, respectively, and 3 patients (2.9%) were no longer receiving any analgesic medication. Among the 55 patients who continued on step 2 analgesics, 37 were treated with tramadol, 14 with codeine and 9 with opium. Pain intensity and the impact of pain on daily activities remained stable.

CONCLUSION

DXP market withdrawal had no consequences on the intensity or impact of chronic pain in elderly patients.