Palliative Pharmacotherapy/Drug-Specific Information/Opioids/Information About Specific Drugs/Non-Traditional Opioids

"Non-Traditional" Opioids

Definition

What exactly constitutes a non-traditional opioid? Non-traditional is a term used loosely to mean opioids that are a bit quirky, the opioids that have interesting additional mechanisms of action: buprenorphine, methadone, tapentadol, and tramadol. These opioids are often underutilized or utilized inappropriately by prescribers less experienced in their intricacies. In other words, most prescribers outside of pain management, palliative care, and hospice will not have dealt routinely with these medications and are generally unfamiliar with them.