Prescription Painkillers Research Paper

"If we could sniff or swallow something that would, for five or six hours each day, abolish our solitude as individuals, atone us with our fellows in a glowing exaltation of affection and make life in all its aspects seem not only worth living, but divinely beautiful and significant, and if this heavenly, world-transfiguring drug were of such a kind that we could wake up next morning with a clear head and an undamaged constitution - then, it seems to me, all our problems (and not merely the one small problem of discovering a novel pleasure) would be wholly solved and earth would become paradise."

Narcotic analgesics, especially morphine are underused for pain control with in the medical field. This underuse is because medical professionals, including doctors, fear patient addiction, side effects and possible lose of their licenses. These fears deny adequate healing and a better quality of life to those who would benefit from a more effective use of these drugs, as done in hospice care.

Opioids are classified as opium like compounds; some (ex. codeine and morphine) exist naturally in opium, which is a gummy substance derived from the seedpod of the opium poppy, indigenous to Southern Asia. Other opioids are of the synthetic category, such as methadone or fentanyl (opioidaddictionsource.com). Though the use of prescription opioids may be well intended, due to their effect on the brain chemistry, it is fairly common for one to become addicted to them; America is amidst a raging prescription opioid epidemic, in fact.

Individuals who use Opioids are Addicts. The history of this very debatable topic is very educational and interesting. Opioids are drugs that are prescribed for severe to chronic pain, some examples of opioids are: morphine,?methadone, Buprenorphine,?hydrocodone, and?oxycodone.?Heroin?is also an opioid and is illegal. Opioid drugs sold under brand names include: OxyContin?,?Percocet?, Palladone?(taken off the market 7/2005),Vicodin?, Percodan?, Tylox? and?Demerol? among others. These drugs are also classified as a schedule II drug.

Opioid is the fastest addiction in Iowa. “These are not aspirin,” says Dale Woolery. You can’t mix these painkillers with any other pill or painkillers in fact. Opioid painkillers are 50 to 100 times stronger than any other painkiller, from prescription painkillers to illegal painkillers, which are a knockoff of Heroin. Opioid is in the class of most addicting and lethal pills.

Often addicts will get their fix from an illegal drug known has Heroin, a street drug that contains opiates. In some cases, opioid addicts will steal the drug from pharmacies or patients or will even obtain prescriptions from unethical doctors. There are also some instances where doctors are tricked into proscribing opioids to people that provide fake documents.

Opioids attach themselves to specific proteins called opioid receptors. These opioid receptors are found throughout the body including the brain, spinal cord, and GI tract. When an opioid attaches to a receptor, it can reduce the perception of pain. Through this coupling with receptors, opioids can also produce drowsiness, mental confusion, nausea, constipation, and, depending upon the amount of drug taken, can stop respiration leading to death (overdosing).

UCF’s College of Medicine was recently recognized by the White House as one of 60 medical schools across the country to pledge to teach students about the dangers of prescribing opioids to patients for pain. The pledge follows President Obama’s public-private efforts to fight the nations epidemic of prescription opioid and heroin abuse, according to a press release from UCF.

The misuse of and dependence to opioid drugs such as the frequently prescribed oxycodone, hydrocodone, fentanyl, and the illegal drug heroin is a worldwide crisis that impacts the societal well-being, health, and economy of nearly every population. The wake of the recently named epidemic can be felt by family members, health care professionals, communities, and policy makers around the world. Taking the lead in causes of accidental deaths in the United States, the fatalities resulting from opioid overdose have quadrupled since the early 2000’s. Research has indicated a causal link between prescription opioid abuse and increased rates of heroin usage

While narcotics are most commonly used to treat acute pain, opioids, one subgroup of narcotics, are being used most commonly to treat chronic pain. The number of opioid prescriptions has been on the rise over the past 25 years, increasing from “76 million prescriptions in 1991 to nearly 207 million in 2013” (Volkow, 2014, p. 1). This has no doubt contributed to the increasing number of unintentional overdose deaths seen in recent years. The United States has seen their unintentional overdose rates quadruple since 1999, which may be explained by the fact that the United States is responsible for the use of nearly all of the word’s hydrocodone (Volkow, 2014).

Philippe Lucas’s article “Cannabis as an Adjunct to or Substitute for Opiates in the Treatment of Chronic Pain” recommends using cannabis instead of opiates to relieve chronic pain. He also proposes cannabis may be used to treat prescription opiate abuse by patients suffering from chronic pain and depicts cannabis as a medicine and not a gateway drug. Lucas suggests national governments abandon misinformation emphasizing drug prohibition and start supporting the claim that cannabis effectively treats a variety of illnesses including chronic pain, and is a possible “drug exit” for problematic substance abuse. Appeals to logos, ethos, and pathos are frequently present, creating the ideal balance of evidence and theory regarding medicinal cannabis and opiates.

Coal miners are affected as well since they will become injured, and most likely get addicted to the pain medication that is prescribed to them. According to the documentary, the prescription rate of painkillers is two times more than that in Miami or New York. While the norm in Appalachia is drug addiction, the majority of society “regard the consumption of too much of, or dependence on, a given substance a form of deviance” according to Goode (Goode, 179). Courtney’s mother explained that she took thirty to forty pain pills a day to properly function. Most people in society would refer to this as deviance. From drug addiction, there also comes physical characteristics that can change such as wrinkly skin, toothlessness, and anorexia that

Good post! Very informative and well thought out plan of treatment. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) occurs in 20% of patients with a diagnosis of diabetes. Along with the complaints that our patient reported in the case study, many patients report deep aching, allodynia worse at nighttime, and paraesthaesia in their lower extremities (Malik, 2012). I agree with your suggested treatment of pain of Gabapentin, including Tramadol and Tylenol. Many people assume that pain should be treated with opioids; however, this presents more challenges. With opioid treatment, there are concerns for addiction, misuse, and adverse effects (Pesa, Meyer, Quock, Rattana, & Mody, 2013). When we are able, I think it is beneficial to prescribe

There are three types of prescribed abused drugs: opioids, depressants, and stimulants. The most powerful is opioids. Opioids are used to block out pain. Some of these include opanas, oxycontin, and roxicodone, and 5.1 million Americans abuse them regularly (Drugabuse.gov). Some of those pills can cost any where from five dollars a pill all the way up to ninety dollars a pill (Drugs a-z) and could even cost more than that depending on where you live. Some of the street names can be roxy, o.p.s, oxy, and captain coden(Drug abuse.gov). ´“At the age of 20, I became an addict to a narcotic,which began with a prescription following a surgery.¨´-James. People normally become addicted to painkillers because of doctor giving them prescriptions after a major surgery.

There are multiple drugs that are classified as narcotics. Narcotics are defined by Merriam-Webster’s medical dictionary as, “a drug that in moderate does dulls the senses, relieves pain, and induces profound sleep but in excessive doses causes stupor, coma, or convulsions.” This is an issue when these narcotics are being abused or taken out of context. There are prescription narcotics, but there are also the street drugs that are being illegally produced and sold. Prescription pain medications are not a bad thing when they are prescribed and used correctly. Some examples of prescription narcotics are codeine, fentanyl and hydrocodone. While there are beneficial elements to these medications, there are also side effects. Medline Plus explains a few side effects as drowsiness, impaired judgement and a strong desire, or craving, for these medications. This is how the addictions begin to occur.