The Prevalence of Off-label Prescribing of Transmucosal Immediate-Release Fentanyl in France.

J Pain Symptom Manage

Université de Clermont Auvergne (J.D., C.C., N.A.), CHU Clermont-Ferrand, Inserm, Neuro-Dol, Service Pharmacologie médicale, Centres d'Addictovigilance et Pharmacovigilance, Centre Evaluation et Traitement de la douleur, Clermont-Ferrand, France; Observatoire français des Médicaments Antalgiques (OFMA/French Monitoring Centre for Analgesic Drugs) (J.D., C.C., N.A.), Université Clermont-Ferrand, Clermont-Ferrand, France; Observatoire français des Médicaments Antalgiques (OFMA/French Monitoring Centre for Analgesic Drugs (N.A.), Université Clermont-Ferrand, Clermont-Ferrand, France.

Published: June 2022

Context: The abuse of opioids and opioid-related harms, including deaths, in the United States are well documented. In the European Union, opioid use has also been increasing, particularly of fentanyl.

Objective: We assessed the prevalence of off-label prescribing of transmucosal immediate-release fentanyl (TIRF), in France, in 2019. We looked at the patients' and prescribers' characteristics and compared the population of patients who received TIRF in off-label prescriptions with those taking it on-label. We also examined the differences between the patients with and without cancer in the off-label use population.

Methods: This was a population-based cross-sectional study conducted in 2019, using the French national insurance claims database Système National d'Informations Inter-Régimes de l'Assurance Maladie, covering 98.8% of the French population, or 66 million people.

Results: We selected 224,000 patients with fentanyl prescriptions. Among them, 23,209 had at least one TIRF delivered. The median age was 71 years (59-85) and most patients were female (55.8%). The prevalence of off-label prescribing of TIRF was 51.8% (n = 12,031), corresponding to 9827 patients not diagnosed with cancer. The three main pharmaceutical TIRF specialties prescribed in two groups were Abstral, Pecfent, and Instanyl. Overall, TIRF was mainly prescribed by private general practitioners (64.8%).

Conclusion: The prevalence of off-label prescribing of TIRF in France is extremely high. A field survey is now needed 1) to better understand why TIRF is used in conditions not indicated in its marketing authorization, and in what clinical situations, and 2) to determine whether the benefit/risk ratio of such use is favorable.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2022.02.016DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

prevalence off-label
16
off-label prescribing
16
prescribing transmucosal
8
transmucosal immediate-release
8
immediate-release fentanyl
8
tirf
8
tirf france
8
prescribing tirf
8
off-label
5
patients
5

Similar Publications

Background: A significant number of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) on direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) receives off-label or inappropriate doses. This study examines the prevalence, dosages, and clinical outcomes in AF-patients on DOAC therapy admitted to an emergency department (ED).

Methods: This retrospective single-center observational study utilized data from the Heidelberg Registry of Atrial Fibrillation (HERA-FIB), consecutively including patients with AF presenting to the ED of the University Hospital of Heidelberg from June 2009 to March 2020.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

: This study aimed to evaluate whether gender-related anatomical differences in proximal aortic neck morphology affect the feasibility and outcomes of endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR) in women with abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA). : This study performed a retrospective analysis of patients electively treated by EVAR for infrarenal AAA between January 2019 and December 2023. Demographics, anatomical characteristics, and stent graft details were analyzed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Buprenorphine is an opioid approved for medication-assisted treatment of opioid use disorder. Used off-label, buprenorphine has been reported to contribute to the clinical management of anxiety. Although human anxiety is a highly prevalent disorder, anxiety is a latent construct that cannot be directly measured.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unconventional use of injectable long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine against HIV-1 in PWH in clinical need: 52 weeks real-world data.

BMC Infect Dis

January 2025

Clinical and Biomedical Science Department (DIBIC), Infectious Diseases Unit, University of Milan, Legnano General Hospital, ASST Ovest Milanese, Italy, Legnano, 20025, MI, Italy.

Background: Long-acting Cabotegravir and Rilpivirine (LA CAB + RPV) shows potential advantages in heavily comorbid and even in viremic people with HIV (PWH). We assessed LA CAB + RPV durability in a cohort of PWH with a high comorbidity burden and adherence issues.

Methods: Retrospective observational study in two Italian outpatient settings enrolling PWH who switched to LA CAB + RPV from February 2021 to January 2024 in presence of exclusion criteria enlisted in registrational trials or with other worrisome clinical risks.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a prevalent autoimmune condition worldwide resulting from the loss of tolerance against self-antigens. The constitutional symptoms of SLE are well-known, including fatigue, fever, myalgia, weight loss, arthralgia, arthritis, malar rash, and photosensitivity. These symptoms often overshadow the impacts SLE can have on all body systems, with the renal system frequently impacted.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!