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Higher Amounts of Opioids Filled After Surgery Increase Risk of Serious Falls and Fall-Related Injuries Among Older Adults

  • Among opioid naïve Medicare patients aged 65 and older who underwent elective outpatient surgery, 76.3% filled a perioperative opioid prescription, and 0.62% suffered a serious fall or fall-related injury within 30 days after surgery.
  • Higher amount of opioid filled over 30 days prior to surgery through to 30 days after surgery was strongly associated with increased risk of serious falls after surgery; patients who filled ≥ 225 OMEs after surgery were over twice as likely to fall after surgery compared with the group who filled < 150 OME (RR 2.29, 95% CI 1.72–3.07).
  • Older age, being female, and dual Medicaid eligibility were also associated with higher risk of serious falls and fall-related injuries.


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Santosa KB, Lai YL, Brummett CM, et al. Higher Amounts of Opioids Filled After Surgery Increase Risk of Serious Falls and Fall-Related Injuries Among Older Adults [published online ahead of print, 2020 Aug 3]. J Gen Intern Med. 2020. doi:10.1007/s11606-020-06015-6