MedicalXpress reports on a  study by HSS hip and knee surgeon Geoffrey H. Westrich, MD, and colleagues that found that the antidepressant duloxetine reduced the use of opioid medication when added to a multimodal pain management regimen after knee replacement surgery.

Duloxetine is prescribed to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety, musculoskeletal pain, fibromyalgia, and neuropathic pain. The HSS investigators set out to determine if duloxetine would also reduce opioid consumption or pain after a total knee replacement.

"Our research found that duloxetine can be used to reduce opioid usage after total knee replacement in selected patients who can be appropriately monitored for any potential side effects of the medication," Dr. Westrich noted. "Additional studies are needed to define the optimal duration of treatment, to assess for rare side effects, and to examine the applicability of postoperative duloxetine for other surgical procedures."

Read the full article at MedicalXpress.com