Pain care for veterans with end-stage kidney disease
Official title: Optimizing Pain Management in End-Stage Renal Disease Among Veterans (OPERA-Vets):Balancing Benefits and Harms of Opioids
Funded at VA Boston Health Care System · NIH-11240257 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how changes in VA opioid policies have affected pain control and safety for veterans with end-stage kidney disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | VA Boston Health Care System NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2021 |
| Project end | June 30, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| NIH project number | 5I01HX003282-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11240257 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
The main focus is veterans with end-stage renal disease who are receiving dialysis and who have chronic pain or are using or considering opioid medications.
✕Less likely to help
People without end-stage kidney disease, non-veterans, or those not receiving care tied to VA or linked community dialysis services are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
As a veteran with end-stage kidney disease, this project looks at how VA opioid policies over the past decade changed pain care and opioid-related harms for people like me. Researchers will analyze VA and community dialysis care records to track opioid prescribing patterns, pain outcomes, overdoses, and other serious adverse events. They will compare periods before and after major policy changes and examine differences by where veterans receive dialysis and what non-opioid options are available. The aim is to identify approaches that reduce opioid harms without leaving patients with uncontrolled pain.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help shape safer, more effective pain-management approaches and policies tailored to veterans on dialysis.
How similar studies have gone: Other VA efforts have reduced opioid prescribing and harms broadly, but few prior studies have focused specifically on veterans with end-stage renal disease, so this applies known policies to a high-risk group.
Where this research is happening
-
VA Boston Health Care System
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wachterman, Melissa — VA Boston Health Care System
- Study coordinator: Wachterman, Melissa
Related research
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.