Opioid Intake and Quality of Life After Hospital Discharge From Major Surgery: A Health Economic Evaluation

Three analyses using different assumptions showed that, among opioid naïve patients undergoing inpatient surgery, greater postoperative opioid consumption among surgical patients was associated with reduced health-related quality of life. However, the effect sizes were small, such that likely close to zero opioid intake after hospital discharge would be needed to exceed the minimal important difference. These results have implications for primary economic endpoints of future randomized trials of improved postoperative analgesia.