Persistent Opioid Use May Be a Failure of Pain Management Rather Than Prescribing—Reply

In Reply We appreciate the letter from Flores and Weyand concerning our article¹ and agree that persistent pain after cardiac surgery is a concerning phenomenon and must be addressed with high-quality, evidence-based postoperative pain management in the hospital and after discharge. To be clear, when postoperative pain is properly controlled, patients’ recovery, quality of life, and functional status are enhanced. We strongly agree with Flores and Weyand that suboptimal postoperative pain management can lead to the development of chronic postsurgical pain.