Opioid use is associated with worse knee osteoarthritis at baseline and faster progression of degenerative changes: data from the osteoarthritis initiative (OAI)

Abstract

Purpose: Despite current guidelines, opioids are frequently prescribed as pain medication for symptom control in osteoarthritis (OA). While chondrotoxicity of different subtypes of opioids is investigated and discussed in recent studies, the impact of opioid medication itself on progression of OA has not been clarified. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate associations between opioid use with structural and clinical characteristic of OA of the knee using cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses, with the Whole-Organ Magnetic Resonance Imaging Score (WORMS) and WOMAC and KOOS scores as outcomes.