Too much of a bad thing: Discharge opioid prescriptions in pediatric appendectomy patients

Retrospective study of 371 pediatric simple appendectomy patients found highly variable opioid prescribing practices, with 62.5% receiving discharge prescriptions ranging from 0.2-3.4 mg/kg/day OME for 1-30 days. Patients prescribed opioids had 3.3 times higher odds of ED visits, highlighting need for improved opioid stewardship in pediatric postoperative care.