7 STAGGERING STATISTICS

America's opioid epidemic is being felt nationwide.

Recent guidelines and consensus studies from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),  the American College of Physicians, and the National Academies (Health and Medicine Division) encourage health care providers to pursue safer alternatives, like physical therapy, for most non-cancer-related pain management. Choosing physical therapy is a safe and effective alternative to manage and treat pain, and can help you avoid the risks and side effects of opioids.

Statics from the CDC, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation reveal the gravity of the problem.

1. In 2016, health care providers across the US wrote more than 214 million prescriptions for opioid pain medication, a rate that demonstrated 66.5 prescriptions per 100 people. Some counties had rates 7 times higher than that.

2. As many as 1 in 4 people who receive prescription opioids long-term for noncancer pain in primary care settings struggle with addiction.

3. From 1999 to 2015, more than 183,000 people have died in the US from overdoses related to prescription opioids.

4. While opioid abuse is down in younger Americans, it has risen among older adults. For adults aged 50 years and older, opioid abuse doubled from 1% to 2%.

5. Every day, more than 1,000 people are treated in emergency departments for misusing prescription opioids.

6. Veterans are twice as likely to die from accidental opioid overdoses as non-veterans.

7. Opioid-related hospitalizations among women in the US increased by 75% between 2005 and 2014.

Do you know someone in pain? Encourage them to talk to her or his physician or physical therapist about safe ways to manage pain.

The American Physical Therapy Association’s #ChoosePT campaign raises awareness about the risks of opioids and the safe alternative of physical therapy for chronic pain management.

NON-OPIOID TREATMENT AFTER SURGERIES

The results of a recent consumer survey found that 79% of patients who have undergone surgery would choose a non-opioid option for treatment of pain over opioids. These findings make clear the high level of interest patients have in nonopioid treatment after surgery, despite the nation’s growing opioid epidemic.

The survey (Opioid Addiction and Dependence after Surgery Is Significantly Higher Than Previously Known- June 13, 2016) provides valuable insight into the issue, and suggests more patient education is needed.

The study polled 500 adults in the United States who had orthopedic surgery or soft tissue surgery in June 2016, and was conducted in support of the Plan Against Pain campaign, an effort designed to educate patients about their choices in managing pain following a surgical procedure. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), sales of prescription opioids have quadrupled in the United States. In response to the growing epidemic, the CDC released opioid prescribing guidelines in March 2016, urging prescribers to reduce the use of opioids in favor of safe alternatives like physical therapy.

Physical therapists partner with patients, their families, and other health care professionals to manage pain through movement and exercise.

The American Physical Therapy Association launched a national campaign to raise awareness about the risks of long-term use of opioids and the fact that physical therapy is safe alternative pain management. Learn more at our #ChoosePT page.

8 MILLION AMERICANS DON'T KNOW THEY HAVE WHAT?!

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a quarter of those in United States living with diabetes do not know they have it. 

An estimated 29.1 million people (9.3%) in the US have diabetes, but roughly 8.1 million of them (27.8%) haven’t been diagnosed. This information, along with a number of other new diabetes statistics, is featured in the CDC’s 2014 National Diabetes Statistics Report, which is based on data from 2012.

The report also found that the diabetes rate for Hispanics (12.8%), non-Hispanic blacks (13.2%), and Native Americans/Alaska Natives (15.9%) were markedly higher than the 7.6% rate of non-Hispanic whites. The diabetes rate among Asians was 9%.

Type II Diabetes, or the type of Diabetes that's acquired by habits and lifestyle choices, is largely correlated with the obesity epidemic that's been taking over the United States for the past 30 years. According to NHANES, almost 70% of Americans are considered to be overweight or obese, as of 2014 - and almost 34% of children are considered to fall within the same category. In 2013, the CDC had to come up with a new category of obesity to accommodate the number of children who were so far off the chart for age and sex-related BMI statistics, that they had to create a "Severely Obese" category, in which children fall within 120 - 160% of the 95th percentile for weight in children their age and height. 

The obesity epidemic is REAL, and it's costing more lives than we realize. In 2015, life expectancy decreased for the first time in almost 40 years, and obesity plays a HUGE role in that. 

Being healthy is a lifestyle choice - one YOU can make for a better future for you and your children!