Investigating Interventions to Reduce Residual Opioids in the Home Following Legitimate Opioid Prescribing in Children.

Investigating the Impact of Formal Interventions on Reducing Residual Opioids in the Home Following Legitimate Prescribing for Acute Post-surgical Pain in Pediatric Patients.

The overall objective of this study is to evaluate strategies to reduce unused opioids prescribed for pediatric acute post-surgical pain management.

Prescription opioids are abused by an estimated 12.5 million Americans, and accidental opioid overdose is the leading cause of injury death in the US. Many of these drugs originate from leftover prescription opioids related to postoperative overprescribing, lack of proper disposal, and unsafe home storage. Governmental guidelines indicate that leftover prescription opioids should be preferentially returned to a drug take back site; however, many people do not utilize these programs due to travel distance, lack of transportation, or other factors.

The aims are to quantify the amount of unused opioids in the home following painful pediatric surgical procedures, investigate the impact of formal interventions on disposal of residual opioids in the home following these surgeries, and to identify current behaviors of adolescents and their family members in the handling of unused prescribed opioids.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Male or female children ages 12-17.9 years old
• ASA physical status 1 and 2
• Patients undergoing primary posterior spinal fusion surgery for correction of idiopathic scoliosis.
• Patients undergoing Nuss bar correction of pectus excavatum deformity.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Oxycodone allergy
• severe sleep apnea
• developmental delay
• neurological disorders
• liver disease/impairment
• renal disease/decreased renal function
• patients on opioid therapy prior to surgery
• Requires a translator for communication in English