This refers to patient behaviours resembling addiction, such as requesting additional or early medication refills, dose escalation, or medication-seeking, but these behaviours occur in response to inadequate pain management rather than true substance use disorder.
Once pain is appropriately assessed and effectively treated, these behaviours typically resolve, distinguishing pseudoaddiction from genuine addiction, where compulsive use continues despite harm.
However, the term has been criticised in recent years for potentially contributing to the overprescription of opioids by framing legitimate concerns about dependency as merely inadequate pain control. As a result, some health organisations now prefer terms that focus on comprehensive pain assessment and balanced prescribing practices rather than using “pseudoaddiction.”