Oxycontin is an opium derivative like codeine, but it is significantly more powerful. Oxycodone is the active ingredient and it is present in Oxycontin in a very high dosage. When the drug was developed, this was considered to be a significant advantage because, unlike other opium derivatives, it only had to be taken every 12 hours.
Oxycontin was approved for use as a narcotic pain reliever by the FDA in 1995. However, right from the start, the FDA noted that this was a very dangerous and highly addictive drug, and Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of Oxycontin, was required to put significant warnings on the packaging. Included in those warnings was the warning that Oxycontin had potential to be addictive and that the pills, which work on a time release basis, were not be chewed, ground up, or dissolved as that would cause an immediate high instead of the long-lasting pain relief desired.
Despite the FDA’s concerns and Purdue Pharma’s own drug tests which confirmed that these concerns were valid, Oxycontin was occasionally marketed to doctors without significant attention being given to the side effects and potential for abuse and addiction. The FDA required Purdue Pharma to label the drug with a black box warning, the highest level of warning, and to send a letter, in 2001, to health care professionals reminding them of the guidelines for prescribing Oxycontin and the dangers of this drug. Despite these moves, Oxycontin continues to cause problems as a recreational drug rather than a prescription painkiller. The Journal of the American Medical Association noted that from 1997 to 1998, the number of deaths attributed to oxycodone rose 93% and the number of emergency trips related to oxycodone overdose rose 32%.
The general side effects of Oxycontin include drowsiness, constipation, and slowed breathing. However, an overdose, whether due to increased tolerance over time or one large single dose, can cause respiratory failure leading to death. Furthermore, if withdrawal from Oxycontin is not handled carefully, the effects are much like heroin withdrawal: severe flu-like symptoms, muscle and bone pain, and acute nausea. A continuing danger of taking Oxycontin is the risk of becoming addicted to it. At some point, the chemical changes in the brain urge the patient to continue taking the drug, at whatever cost, to continue the high. |
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