Marlana
06-23-2004, 07:40 AM
Here is an article I found. I am not sure how old it is but it seems to hold some hope for us..
246. My doctor would like me to gradually discontinue using opioid medications to treat my severe IC pain. He would like me to try an implantable stimulation device. What is the best choice? The opioids have worked well for me and I hesitate to take such a big step.
We tend to have fear of opioid medications and you need to be followed by a specialist while you are taking them. I am lucky to have Dr. Dan Brookoff here to help me with these medications. If a patient has pain, these opioid medications are the tools to help relieve the pain. There is a difference between using the medication to be functioning or using it to forget or escape life. The second is drug abuse. You do not need to interrupt your pain medication prior to an implant. Normally I do a test-stimulation and if it gives significant (at least 50 percent) improvement, the patient is eligible for the implant. After that the medications are slowly reduced, but only as far as possible with the pain. Sometimes while resolving pelvic pain, other types of pain surface, which have been hidden previously. Discontinuing opioid treatment needs to be done slowly and carefully. We have to work together. I agree that it would be good to be without opioids, but only if possible. You do not use them because you like them. It is not a drug, but a medication. You have to find the person you trust and then you have to work together. If one medication is not working for you, do not hesitate to tell your physician. I ask my patients to be honest. They are not doing me a favor by telling me that they are better when they are really not improving. It takes time to find your solution, but I am sure that, working with the right physician, you can find at least some improvement of your symptoms. Do not give up hope. Much research is being conducted, and new tools, i.e. medication, devices, drug delivery systems and others, will soon be available.
246. My doctor would like me to gradually discontinue using opioid medications to treat my severe IC pain. He would like me to try an implantable stimulation device. What is the best choice? The opioids have worked well for me and I hesitate to take such a big step.
We tend to have fear of opioid medications and you need to be followed by a specialist while you are taking them. I am lucky to have Dr. Dan Brookoff here to help me with these medications. If a patient has pain, these opioid medications are the tools to help relieve the pain. There is a difference between using the medication to be functioning or using it to forget or escape life. The second is drug abuse. You do not need to interrupt your pain medication prior to an implant. Normally I do a test-stimulation and if it gives significant (at least 50 percent) improvement, the patient is eligible for the implant. After that the medications are slowly reduced, but only as far as possible with the pain. Sometimes while resolving pelvic pain, other types of pain surface, which have been hidden previously. Discontinuing opioid treatment needs to be done slowly and carefully. We have to work together. I agree that it would be good to be without opioids, but only if possible. You do not use them because you like them. It is not a drug, but a medication. You have to find the person you trust and then you have to work together. If one medication is not working for you, do not hesitate to tell your physician. I ask my patients to be honest. They are not doing me a favor by telling me that they are better when they are really not improving. It takes time to find your solution, but I am sure that, working with the right physician, you can find at least some improvement of your symptoms. Do not give up hope. Much research is being conducted, and new tools, i.e. medication, devices, drug delivery systems and others, will soon be available.