- Prescribe fewer opioids at discharge. Each additional opioid pill prescribed was associated with lower odds of patients remaining opioid-free, suggesting smaller prescriptions may be sufficient for most elective colorectal surgery patients.
- Half of patients don't need opioids postdischarge. With 51% achieving opioid-free recovery across all surgical approaches, multimodal analgesia (acetaminophen, NSAIDs) can effectively manage pain for many patients without opioids.
- Patient education matters. Higher patient activation was linked to opioid-free recovery, indicating that preoperative counseling on pain expectations and non-opioid strategies may reduce reliance on opioids after discharge.
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