Does chronic opioid administration increase the risk of cardiac-related adverse effects in patients with chronic pain conditions?
While opioids are important for chronic pain, careful patient selection and monitoring are advised due to a potential, unconfirmed risk of cardiac adverse effects.
There are limited data to suggest that chronic opioid administration may be associated with an increased risk for cardiac-related adverse effects. However, this observation has not yet been confirmed. Regardless, while opioids are an important medication for the treatment of a multitude of chronic pain conditions, careful patient selection, and diligent monitoring is likely to decrease the risk of harm and improve patient outcomes.
Chen et al. (Thu,) studied this question.