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Many patients presenting to U.S. emergency departments (EDs) are prescribed opiates at discharge. While opiates are effective for analgesia, one of their most common side effects is constipation, which can affect up to 20% of patients older than 65. Researchers analyzed National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey data from 2010 to determine how frequently adult patients prescribed opioids were also prescribed laxatives. To verify that laxative prescriptions were captured by the database, ED visits for patients presenting for constipation were also analyzed.
There were 5291 ED visits among adults without constipation who were discharged with opioids, representing an estimated 21 million such visits nationwide (including 1.9 million for p…