Long-term Opioid Therapy, Misuse and Mortality in Patients With Chronic Non-cancer Pain in Germany

Inclusion Criteria: \- Patients are only included if they have been diagnosed in at least three quarters in the study period with one of the following diagnoses: R51, R52\*, M00\*-M99\*, G43\*-G44\*, G50.0 or G50.1, F45.4\*, G62\*, or E10.4\*-E14.4 plus G63.3. At least one diagnoses must be between 1 January 2012 and index treatment and main and secondary hospital diagnoses (i.e. Haupt- und Nebendiagnosen) will be used to include the patients. Exclusion Criteria: * Patients with present opioid and non-opioid pain medication prescriptions in 2012 are excluded from analysis (therapy-naïve patients only). * Cancer patients will be excluded if the cancer diagnosis is accompanied by at least one of the following treatments in the same quarter: radiation therapy or chemotherapy all defined by the OPS codes in. Diagnoses will be assessed via ICD-10 diagnoses during the inclusion period from 1 January 2012 until index treatment and main and secondary hospital diagnoses (i.e. Haupt- und Nebendiagnosen) will be taken into account. * Palliative care, coded by ICD-10 code Z51.5 or OPS code 8-982\*, 8-98e\*, 8-98h\* before index date is excluded * Opioid substitution treatment with ICD-10 code Z51.83 in the study period is excluded.