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OxyContin
Generic
ingredients: Oxycodone hydrochloride (controlled-release).
Brand names: M-Oxy, OxyNorm, OxyFAST, OxyIR, Percolone,
Roxicodone.
Prescriptions Available: 10, 20, 40, and 80 mg
tablets; effective for 8-12 hours.
OxyNorm is available in 5, 10, and 20 mg capsules and tablets;
also as a 1 mg/1 ml liquid in 250 mg bottles and as a 10
mg/1 ml concentrated liquid in 100 mg bottles.
Oxycodone
(prescription brand name: OxyContin) is an agonist opioid
- a habit forming narcotic
analgesic (pain killer) available by prescription.
Opioid agonists are some of the most effective pain killers
(analgesics)
available.
Unlike other analgesics, opioid agonists have an increasing
effect with increased doses. Meaning that the more you take,
the better you feel. Other analgesics, like aspirin or acetaminophen,
have a threshold to their effectiveness. You can see why,
particularly for people who suffer chronic pain, a medication
like OxyContin can be so beneficial: It can potentially
provide up to four times the relief of a non-opioid analgesic,
so even the most severe degree of pain can be managed.
Questions
and Answers:
1.
What is OxyContin?
OxyContin contains oxycodone, a very strong pain killer
similar to morphine. OxyContin is designed so that the oxycodone
is slowly released over time, allowing it to be used twice
daily. You should never break, chew, or crush the OxyContin
tablet since this causes a large amount of oxycodone to
be released from the tablet all at once, potentially resulting
in a dangerous or fatal drug overdose.
2. What kind of pain is OxyContin
used to treat?
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3. How do I know if I have
the right kind of pain for this drug?
Only a physician can determine if OxyContin is a good choice
to manage a your pain. If you have pain every day that lasts
for a large part of the day, and the pain is moderate or
severe in intensity, depending upon other factors in your
medical history, OxyContin may be a good choice for you.
Speak with your physician.
If you feel you only need to take a pain killer occasionally
and this adequately treats your pain, OxyContin is NOT the
right drug for you. If you only need a pain killer for a
few days, for example following a dental or surgical procedure,
OxyContin is not the right drug for you.
4. Are there any activities
that I should not perform while using OxyContin?
OxyContin may interfere with your ability to do certain
things that require your full attention. You should not
drive a car, operate heavy machinery, or do other possibly
dangerous activities while taking OxyContin.
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5. What should I do if
the pain continues after I take it?
Because OxyContin is a very strong medication, you should
not adjust the dose without first speaking with your physician
or RX provider.
6. Can I take other prescription
medicines at the same time?
Combining OxyContin with some other types of medication
such as sleeping pills, tranquilizers, and other pain killers
may be dangerous due to the risk of interactions of these
medications that can result in injury or death. You should
speak with your physician before taking any other medicines
with OxyContin. You should also tell your physician about
all RX prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, and dietary
supplements/herbal remedies that you are taking before starting
OxyContin.
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7. Can I drink alchohol?
You should not drink any beverage that contains alcohol
while you are taking OxyContin. This includes beer, wine,
and all distilled liquors. OxyContin and alcoholic beverages
may have dangerous interactions that can result in serious
injury or death.
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8. What should I do when I
no longer need the OxyContin prescription?
When you no longer need OxyContin, the dose should be gradually
reduced so that you do not feel sick with withdrawal symptoms.
You should ask your physician for a plan on how to gradually
decrease the dose and when to stop the OxyContin.
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9. Can I take it if I am
pregnant or about to nurse my baby?
Your should speak to your physician about the effects of
drugs like OxyContin on an unborn or newborn child.
10. Are there any other
special precautions I should be aware of?
Because there is a large dose of medication in each OxyContin
tablet, you must be very careful to keep OxyContin stored
in a secure location, out of the reach of children. When
you no longer need OxyContin for pain relief, you should
flush the unused tablets down the toilet.
More
Information on RX Prescription OxyContin:
MedlinePlus:
OxyContin
DEA
(Drug Enforcement Agency): OxyContin
FDA
CDER (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research): OxyContin
Wikipedia:
OxyContin
OxyContin
is intended to help relieve pain that is moderate to severe
in intensity, when that pain is present all the time, and
expected to continue for a long time. This level of pain
severity may be caused by a variety of different medical
conditions. There are several prescription pain killers
that usually can provide stronger pain relief than just
aspirin. These include the opiate-related compounds Codeine,
Propoxyphene, Morphine, Hydrocodone, Lorcet, Lortab, Zydone,
Hydrocet, Percodan (Percocet), Darvon (Darvocet), and Vicodin
(Vicoprofen).
Federal
law states you must have a valid RX prescription from your
doctor to buy oxycodone pain killers.
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