Mariano Medical was founded to support the individual's right for appropriate pain management while guarding against misuse, abuse and addiction. We guide HCOs, attorneys, and insurers thru the pain/addiction landscape.
Addiction Prevention
Addiction is a chronic disease characterized by drug seeking and use that is compulsive, or difficult to control, despite harmful consequences.
No single factor can predict whether a person will become addicted to opioids. A combination of genetic, environmental, and developmental factors influences risk for addiction. The more risk factors a person has, the greater the chance that taking opioids can lead to addiction.
Misuse of prescription opioids means taking a medication in a manner or dose other than prescribed; taking someone else’s prescription, even if for a legitimate medical complaint such as pain; or taking a medication to feel euphoria (i.e., to get high).
Prescription opioid misuse, is a serious public health problem in the United States. Although most people take prescription medications responsibly, an estimated 54 million people (more than 20 percent of those aged 12 and older) have used such medications for non-medical reasons at least once in their lifetime.1 According to results from the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 2.1 million Americans used prescription drugs non-medically for the first time within the past year, which averages to approximately 5,500 initiates per day.
1. Florence CS, Zhou C, Luo F, Xu L. The Economic Burden of Prescription Opioid Overdose, Abuse, and Dependence in the United States, 2013. Med Care. 2016;54(10):901-906. doi:10.1097/MLR.0000000000000625. 2. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (http://www.samhsa.gov/data/) 3. Morone NE, Weiner DK. Pain as the fifth vital sign: exposing the vital need for pain education. Clin Ther. 2013;35(11):1728-1732. doi:10.1016/j.clinthera.2013.10.001. 4. Van Zee A. The Promotion and Marketing of OxyContin: Commercial Triumph, Public Health Tragedy. Am J Public Health. 2009;99(2):221-227. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2007.131714. 5. Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (CBHSQ). 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Detailed Tables. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; 2016. 6. Vowles KE, McEntee ML, Julnes PS, Frohe T, Ney JP, van der Goes DN. Rates of opioid misuse, abuse, and addiction in chronic pain: a systematic review and data synthesis. Pain. 2015;156(4):569-576. doi:10.1097/01.j.pain.0000460357.01998.f1.
“Every form of addiction is bad, no matter whether the narcotic be alcohol or morphine or idealism.”
~ Carl Jung
Misuse of prescription opioids can have serious medical consequences. Increases in prescription opioid misuse2 over the last 15 years are reflected in increased emergency room visits, overdose deaths associated with prescription opioids3–6 , and treatment admissions for prescription opioid use disorders, the most severe form of which is addiction. Among those who reported past-year non-medical use of a prescription opioid, nearly 12 percent met criteria for prescription opioid use disorder.1 Unintentional overdose deaths involving opioid pain relievers have more than quadrupled since 1999 and have outnumbered those involving heroin and cocaine since 2002.7
We are passionate and committed to addressing the substantial and growing addiction crisis by focusing on guiding the pain management initiative before it could lead to misuse and addiction. The diversity of pain conditions requires a diversity of research and treatment approaches. Our broad understanding is uniquely positioned to address the limitations of currently available models to guide healthcare organizations, attorneys and insurers thru the pain / addiction landscape.
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