Implant-related complications in patients with opioid use disorder undergoing primary shoulder arthroplasties: a matched-controlled analysis.

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether patients undergoing primary shoulder arthroplasty with opioid use disorder have higher rates of (1) implant-related complications; (2) in-hospital lengths of stay; (3) readmission rates; and (4) costs of care.

Methods: Opioid use disorder patients undergoing primary shoulder arthroplasty were queried and matched in a 1:5 ratio to controls by age, sex, and medical comorbidities within the Medicare database. The query yielded 25,489 patients with ( = 4253) and without ( = 21,236) opioid use disorder. Primary outcomes analyzed included: 2-year implant related complications, in-hospital lengths of stay, 90-day readmission rates, and 90-day costs of care. A value less than 0.01 was considered statistically significant.

Results: Opioid use disorder patients had significantly longer in-hospital lengths of stay (3 days vs. 2 days; 0.0001) compared to matched controls. Opioid use disorder patients were also found to have higher incidence and odds (OR) of readmission rates (12.84 vs. 7.45%; OR: 1.16, 0.0001) and implant-related complications (20.03 vs. 7.95%; OR: 1.82, 0.0001). Study group patients also incurred significantly higher 90-day costs of care ($16,918.85 vs. $15,195.37, 0.0001).

Discussion: This study can be used to help further augment efforts to reduce opioid prescriptions from healthcare providers in shoulder arthroplasty settings.