Trends in the use of opioids vs nonpharmacologic treatments in adults with pain, 2011-2019.

Importance: Chronic pain prevalence among US adults increased between 2010 and 2019. Yet little is known about trends in the use of prescription opioids and nonpharmacologic alternatives in treating pain. Question: What are the annual trends in access to pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic pain treatments among cancer-free US adults with chronic or surgical pain? Findings: In this serial cross-sectional study of Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data from 2011 to 2019 with 46 420 respondents, the prevalence of outpatient nonpharmacologic treatments surpassed prescription opioid use for chronic, but not surgical, pain. Meaning: The findings of this study suggest that nonpharmacologic pain treatments are increasing in prevalence following government policy and practice guidelines; however, barriers to accessing some services may still exist