Wednesday, December 19, 2018
Surprising null hyp
A somewhat surprising null hypothesis.
Opioids are only slightly more effective than placebos at treating pain, according to a new study. The study tracked the more than 26,000 people, all of whom who were experiencing chronic, noncancer pain, as they took either real opioids or placebos. People who took opioids reported "statistically significant but small improvements in pain and physical functioning, and increased risk of vomiting compared with placebo." "What most physicians do not recognize is that 92 percent of people who misuse opioids do so by taking prescription opioids, and that 75 percent of individuals who use heroin report that they started misusing opioids through the misuse of prescription opioids," the researchers wrote, suggesting that people in pain first try Tylenol, ibuprofen or naproxen, which are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.I've never tried opioids. The surgeon gave me a prescription for Oxy after hernia surgery two years ago, but I threw it away. However: This agrees firmly with my experience on NSAIDS like aspirin and Aleve. Quite simply, none of that stuff works at all. NSAIDS only cause constipation and weirdness. They don't touch the pain. It's easier to deal with pain when I'm alert and unconstipated. This raises a serious question about what physicians recognize. Most of them have used opioids personally at one time or another, legit or not. Did they recognize that the drug didn't relieve pain? If not, what do they truly recognize? They recognize a profit from prescribing opioids. That's what they recognize. ¶ 1:13 AM
