Study: 20% of patients are prescribed opioids after cardiac device implantation surgery

One in five patients is prescribed opioids after having a pacemaker or similar device implanted, according to a large US study conducted at Mayo Clinic published in HeartRhythm, the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society and the Cardiac Electrophysiology Society published by Elsevier. Eighty percent of patients who were prescribed opioids had never taken them before. Investigators stress the importance of improving postoperative pain management following cardiac device procedures to reduce use of prescription opioids.