Tramadol - Substance Use Disorder
Dr Helen Fulcher, Goodfellow GP Advisor talks with Northland general practitioner and addiction medicine specialist Dr Alistair Dunn about the prescription drug tramadol and the substance use disorder that can be associated with it’s use.
Topics covered include:
- What does tramadol use disorder look like?
- How do you define substance use disorder or addiction?
- Is this a significant problem for our communities here in New Zealand?
- Who has the potential to develop tramadol use disorder?
- What alternatives are there for treating chronic non-malignant pain?
- What can we do to help patients with tramadol dependance?
This MedTalk was recorded in September 2018
Resources
- Tramadol: Not the Safer Opioid - Goodfellow MedTalk
- Substance use disorder (SUD) - Goodfellow Podcast
- Prescribing tramadol appropriately - bpac article
- Prescription drug misuse: how to identify and manage drug seekers - bpac resource
Peer group discussion points |
1. Tramadol misuse covers a spectrum ranging from recreational use through to full addiction.
2. Pressure to prescribe can be a common experience in primary care. When thinking about drugs of misuse there are some specific strategies or planned responses that can be used if under pressure to prescribe.
3. Tramadol is commonly prescribed in primary care. The first prescription of Tramadol has been shown to have implications regarding potential future development of dependence with the number of days of the first prescription being the important risk factor.
4. Non-pharmacological strategies are important for the ongoing management of chronic non-malignant pain.
5. Reflecting on the MedTalk and the peer group discussion you have had, what could you do differently (if anything) in your practice to improve the prescribing of Tramadol? |
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