Perioperative Management of Patients on Buprenorphine and Methadone: A Narrative Review

Abstract

The opioid epidemic has emerged as a major health and socialproblem over the last few decades. An increasing number of patientswith opioid use disorder are presenting for perioperative management.These patients are either on buprenorphine or methadone for themaintenance and treatment of opioid addiction or chronic pain. Inthe settings of acute pain, the optimal management of patients withopioid use disorder is challenging, and recovery can be jeopardizedsecondary to the unique pharmacology of these agents. The purposeof this narrative review is to summarize the existing studies on theperioperative management of patients who are using buprenorphineand methadone and provide guidance for the management of patientswith opioid use disorder during the perioperative period