Trends in pain management for elderly patients in palliative care: opioid use in home-based care
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.9789/2175-5361.rpcfo.v17.13586Keywords:
Chronic Pain, Integrative Palliative Care, Home Care Services, Analgesics, OpioidAbstract
Objective: Home palliative care plays a crucial role in pain management in elderly patients, aiming to improve their quality of life in a familiar and comfortable environment. The use of opioids is a common practice in the treatment of pain in palliative care, however, their prescription and administration require a personalized approach that is sensitive to the individual characteristics of patients. This study aimed to investigate the use of opioids in pain management among elderly people receiving home palliative care in the fourth most populous city in Brazil. Methods: This was an epidemiological, observational, cross-sectional study conducted through the analysis of electronic medical records. Patients receiving home care, experiencing pain symptoms, and aged over 18 years were included, while records with incomplete data were excluded. Data on epidemiological profile (gender, age, reason for home care) and pain management (use of analgesics, prescriptions) were collected. Results: The records of 80 palliative care patients with pain symptoms were analyzed, the majority being female (58.8%), with a mean age of 77.2±10.8 years, receiving home care due to cardiopulmonary and vascular diseases (38.6%). Opioid use was more frequent among females (55.2%), with morphine sulfate being the most commonly used opioid, in 10mg/ml (39.1%) and 2mg/ml (35.9%) presentations. Conclusion: In a predominantly elderly sample receiving palliative care and reporting pain, with home care due to cardiopulmonary and vascular causes, the predominant use of opioids, especially morphine sulfate, in pain management was identified. In these home care patients, the importance of personalized and sex-sensitive pain management strategies is emphasized.
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