Weighting real-world data to understand opioid tapering outcomes in people with chronic pain and substance use disorders
Official title: Weighting Longitudinal Data to Access Opioid Analgesia Tapering Outcomes among Patients with Co-occurring Chronic Pain and Substance Use Disorder
Funded at Loyola University Chicago · NIH-11394597 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A real-world study will create and test statistical weights to better understand how tapering opioids works for patients who have chronic pain and substance use disorders.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Loyola University Chicago NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Maywood, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2022 |
| Project end | July 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $678,239 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DA057658-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11394597 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with chronic pain and co-occurring substance use disorder or opioid use disorder who receive care in hospitals or clinics captured in the Cerner Real-World database.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals without chronic pain or SUD, or those not represented in the Cerner Real-World data, may not directly benefit from this study.
What this research studies
This project uses large electronic health record data to study opioid tapering alongside medications for opioid use disorder and multidisciplinary pain care. It will build and validate analytic weights using Cerner Real-World data and link it with American Hospital Association and Census information to reflect hospital and population differences. The goal is to produce reliable estimates of outcomes like overdose, hospitalizations, and related events in real-world settings. Researchers will compare weighted results with national benchmarks to ensure accuracy across diverse hospitals and patient groups.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, doctors and health systems could use the weighting methods to better understand what tapering approaches work for patients with co-occurring pain and SUD, guiding safer, more effective care.
How similar studies have gone: Real-world data weighting approaches have shown promise in improving accuracy of observational studies, but this project applies and validates them in a specific co-occurring pain and SUD context.
Where this research is happening
-
Loyola University Chicago
Maywood, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Qeadan, Fares — Loyola University Chicago
- Study coordinator: Qeadan, Fares
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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.