Neuropathic pain - the case for opioid therapy

For many patients, neuropathic pain (NeP) is arguably more difficult to control than nociceptive or 'normal' pain. We also now recognise the great burden that NeP has on the lives of patients - it is not only a matter of treating pain in isolation, but managing all of the issues that affect the patient's quality of life. Until relatively recently we have had little understanding of the pathophysiology causing NeP and have relied on the secondary effects of non-analgesic drugs as the mainstays of treatment. Greater understanding of the pathophysiology of NeP has led to more appropriate therapy and an increased use of multiple drug therapy - 'rational polypharmacy'. Traditional opinions concerning the treatment of NeP have been challenged and it is because of this that the use of opioids in NeP has been re-evaluated. Opioids will never replace tricyclic antidepressants and anti-epileptic drugs as first-line therapy for NeP. However, they are now fully established as effective and useful second- or third-line drugs. Many patients in the past have been potentially undertreated as a result of our inertia to use opioids. The case for opioid therapy in NeP has been firmly established.