MTRAC, the Midlands Therapeutics Review & Advisory Committee, has issued its latest Commissioning Guidance report on fentanyl transdermal patches for the treatment of chronic intractable non-cancer pain (the committee did not consider guidance for use in cancer-related pain because this was considered to be restricted to specialist care.)

The report summarises the clinical trial data for fentanyl transdermal patches and concludes that it is suitable for restricted prescribing under defined conditions.
Fentanyl should be initiated by a specialist or a specialist pain management service, given the range of alternative treatments available for the management of chronic non-cancer pain, and subsequently, continued prescribing can then occur in primary care.

Please see link for details.