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Opioid-Induced Bowel Dysfunction

  • Large Intestine (B Cash, Section Editor)
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Abstract

Opioid-induced bowel dysfunction (OIBD) is a potentially debilitating side effect of chronic opioid use. It refers to a collection of primarily gastrointestinal motility disorders induced by opioids, of which opioid-induced constipation (OIC) is the most common. Management of OIBD is difficult, and affected patients will often limit their opioid intake at the expense of experiencing more pain, to reduce the negative impact of OIBD on their quality of life. Effective pharmacologic therapy for OIC is considered an unmet need and several agents have recently been given priority review and approval for OIC. Furthermore, multiple agents currently in development show promise in treating OIC without significant impact on analgesia or precipitation of withdrawal symptoms. The approval and availability of such medications would represent a significant improvement in the management of OIC and OIBD in patients with chronic pain.

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Conflict of Interest

Gyanprakash A. Ketwaroo declare that he has no conflict of interest.

Vivian Cheng declare that she has no conflict of interest.

Anthony Lembo is a Consultant/Scientific Advisory Board for Ironwood/Forest, Prometheus and Salix.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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  1. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 330 Brookline Ave, Boston, MA, 02215, USA

    Gyanprakash A. Ketwaroo, Vivian Cheng & Anthony Lembo

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  1. Gyanprakash A. Ketwaroo
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  2. Vivian Cheng
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Correspondence to Gyanprakash A. Ketwaroo.

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Ketwaroo, G.A., Cheng, V. & Lembo, A. Opioid-Induced Bowel Dysfunction . Curr Gastroenterol Rep 15, 344 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11894-013-0344-2

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