With a growing number of workers receiving gabapentinoids (e.g., Neurontin®, Lyrica®) for managing pain arising from work-related injuries and increasing safety and abuse concerns, this study examines their use for work-related injuries and illnesses across 28 states.

The study can help state officials understand how often workers injured in their state are prescribed gabapentinoids, whether the prescribing adheres to medical treatment guidelines, and if a higher proportion of workers in their state are at risk of adverse events from concomitant use of gabapentinoids and opioids.

The analysis for the study includes information for roughly 480,000 workers with prescriptions in 28 states who sustained injuries between January 1, 2018, and March 31, 2019. The study examines prescription utilization of these workers in the first year following the injury through March 31, 2020.

The 28 study states are Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Off-Label Use of Gabapentinoids for Work-Related Injuries. Vennela Thumula and Te-Chun Liu. August 2021. WC-21-22.

Video:

Copyright: WCRI