What kind of pain does OxyContin help to treat?

OxyContin is an opioid painkiller medication, and this article discusses all you need to know about Oxycontin.

• OxyContin is a potent medicine used to relieve extreme pain, and it reacts by working on the brain to change the body’s reaction to pain or inflammation.
• Oxycontin changes the way a person feels pain.
• Before starting this medication, you must consult a doctor, have a detailed discussion to ensure that you need OxyContin in your case, and plan the dosage so that you do not experience withdrawal symptoms.
• Oxycontin is a pure agonist opioid whose principal therapeutic action is analgesia. Other members of the class called opioid agonists include substances like hydromorphone, morphine, codeine, hydrocodone, and fentanyl.
• Pharmacological effects of opioid agonists include euphoria, anxiolysis, feelings of relaxation, respiratory depression, cough suppression, constipation, and miosis, as well as analgesia.
• Similar to all pure opioid agonist analgesics, with increasing Oxycontin doses, there is increasing analgesia, unlike with mixed agonist/antagonists or non-opioid analgesics, where there is a limit to the analgesic effect with increasing doses.
• Oxycontin can be administered orally, intranasally, via intravenous, intramuscular, or subcutaneous injection, or rectally.

Precautions for using OxyContin for chronic pain

You must remember that you should only use it for severe pain when non-opioid medicine does not help or if you can’t tolerate them. You should only take a high dosage( above 40 mg per tablet) of the drug if you have frequently been taking moderate amounts of opioid pain killer medicines. A large dosage of OxyContin may also cause overdose or even death. You must, therefore, avoid taking OxyContin for mild pain.

How should I take OxyContin for severe pain?

• You can take OxyContin regardless of food, and patients usually take this medication every 12 hours.
• In case you experience nausea, you should take this medicine with food. You can discuss with your doctor other techniques to control nausea.
• It would be best to swallow whole OxyContin tablets and not crush, chew, break, or dissolve them, leading to OxyContin overdose by releasing all of the medicine at once.
• Consume only a single OxyContin tablet at a time to ensure you do not get choked if your prescribed dosage is for more than one tablet.
• For adults over 18 years: It would be best if you took OxyContin tablets at an interval of twelve hours. The dosage depends on the severity of the pain. It also depends on the patient’s previous history of requirements of analgesic.

Composition and Dosage of Oxycontin for chronic pain

Oxycontin (oxycodone hydrochloride) extended-release tablets are opioid agonists supplied in 5 milligrams, 10 milligrams, 15 milligrams, 20 milligrams, 30 mg, 40 mg, 60 milligrams, 80 mg, and 120 mg tablets for oral administration. The tablet strengths suggest the amount of oxycodone per tablet as the hydrochloride salt.

• Each 5 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 4.5 mg of oxycodone as 5 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 10 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 9.0 mg of oxycodone as 10 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 15 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 13.5 mg of oxycodone as 15 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 20 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 18.0 mg of oxycodone as 20 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 30 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 27 mg of oxycodone as 30 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 40 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 36.0 mg of oxycodone as 40 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 60 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 54 mg of oxycodone as 60 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 80 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 72.0 mg of oxycodone as 80 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.
• Each 120 mg Oxycontin tablet contains 108 mg of oxycodone as 120 mg of oxycodone hydrochloride.

The appearance of the tablets-

• The 5 mg Oxycontin tablets are light blue, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and numerical five on the other.
• The 10 mg Oxycontin tablets are white, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and numerical ten on the other.
• The 15 mg Oxycontin tablets are grey, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and 15 on the other.
• The 20 mg Oxycontin tablets are pink, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and 20 on the other.
• The 30 mg Oxycontin tablets are brown, round, convex tablets marked OC on one side and 30 on the other.
• The 40 mg Oxycontin tablets are yellow, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and 40 on the other.
• The 60 mg Oxycontin tablets are red, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and 60 on the other.
• The 80 mg Oxycontin tablets are green, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and 80 on the other.
• The 120 mg Oxycontin tablets are purple, round, and convex tablets marked OC on one side and 120 on the other.

The usual starting dose for patients who have not taken any opioid in the past or patients with severe pain unmanageable by opioids of lower strength is 10 mg. Some patients can benefit from an initial dose of 5 mg to reduce the occurrence of side effects. OxyContin should not be used in minor patients. OxyContin 120 mg, 80 mg, and 60 mg tablets should not be used in patients not previously exposed to opioids. These tablet strengths may cause dangerous respiratory depression when given to opioid naïve patients.

What should I avoid while taking OxyContin for chronic pain?

You should not drink alcohol during the treatment with OxyContin because that can increase the risk of experiencing adverse side effects. Another essential thing to know is that OxyContin may cause severe breathing problems, especially during consumption’s first or second day. Also, discuss with the doctor if you are pregnant or are planning to be pregnant because OxyContin can cause severe withdrawal symptoms in the baby. Inform the baby’s doctor right away if the baby experiences any of these symptoms- hyperactivity, uncontrolled shaking, abnormal sleep, diarrhea, failure to gain weight or vomiting.

You must avoid consuming grapefruit in any form while you are on this medication. Discuss with your doctor before doing so.

What are the side effects of OxyContin?

Get emergency medical help if you show allergic reaction symptoms to OxyContin: difficult breathing; hives; swelling of your throat, lips, face, or tongue. Opioid medicine can lead to breathlessness and even death. A person caring for you should seek emergency medical attention or give naloxone if you have difficulty in breathing, if you are hard to wake up, or have blue-colored lips.