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Given how taxing these types of drugs are, why are opiates not an option for most people? They don't cause any long or short-term damage to organs.

by rand_r 10y ago

pjc50 10y ago
Fears about addiction, and a huge dispute over how well-founded those fears are.
- douche 10y ago
  Which is slightly odd, considering we had something like 100 years during which codeine, cocaine, heroin, morphine, and a whole bevy of other currently-scheduled drugs were sold essentially unregulated, over the counter and at every county fair in patent medicines. Surely there must be some data there that some conclusions could be drawn from.
fifteenforty 10y ago
Without careful prescription and monitoring, they are certainly more dangerous than the so-called "simple" analgesics (paracetamol/acetaminophen and the NSAIDs). Each year there are many deaths related to prescription opioids[1] and they do result in long-term damage. Some commenters here seem to like codeine. It should be considered at least as dangerous as morphine (which it is metabolised to). Depending on your genetic background, you may poorly metabolise codeine (causing it to be ineffective), or you may metabolise codeine too effectively (causing it to cause respiratory depression, low oxygen levels and possibly death). The tide is gradually moving against it[2], but not quickly enough in my opinion. With all pain, the safest treatments don't involve drugs. [1] http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6450a3.htm http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6450a3.htm [2] http://www.nps.org.au/publications/health-professional/health-news-evidence/2015/codeine-related-deaths http://www.nps.org.au/publications/health-professional/healt...
DanBC 10y ago
This site talks about the problems of opioids for long term pain. https://rcoa.ac.uk/faculty-of-pain-medicine/opioids-aware https://rcoa.ac.uk/faculty-of-pain-medicine/opioids-aware The medical community tends not to talk about addiction, but tolerance. People prescribed opiates for long term pain develop a tolerance for those opioids, and thus need more to get the same pain relief effect. Those patients then end up on very high doses of multiple opiates (which is almost certainly causing them harm, and poses significant risk of suicide, or accidental death (of them or people around them)) and still in pain. People with long term pain deserve better treatment - rapid access to pain management clinics; access to the wide variety of meds combined with psychological therapy and home adaptations. And, yes, opioids if those are the right choice.

Given how taxing these types of drugs are, why are opiates not an option for most people? They don't cause any long or short-term damage to organs.

by rand_r 10y ago

Given how taxing these types of drugs are, why are opiates not an option for most people? They don't cause any long or short-term damage to organs.

pjc50 10y ago

Fears about addiction, and a huge dispute over how well-founded those fears are.

douche 10y ago
Which is slightly odd, considering we had something like 100 years during which codeine, cocaine, heroin, morphine, and a whole bevy of other currently-scheduled drugs were sold essentially unregulated, over the counter and at every county fair in patent medicines. Surely there must be some data there that some conclusions could be drawn from.

fifteenforty 10y ago

Without careful prescription and monitoring, they are certainly more dangerous than the so-called "simple" analgesics (paracetamol/acetaminophen and the NSAIDs). Each year there are many deaths related to prescription opioids[1] and they do result in long-term damage. Some commenters here seem to like codeine. It should be considered at least as dangerous as morphine (which it is metabolised to). Depending on your genetic background, you may poorly metabolise codeine (causing it to be ineffective), or you may metabolise codeine too effectively (causing it to cause respiratory depression, low oxygen levels and possibly death). The tide is gradually moving against it[2], but not quickly enough in my opinion. With all pain, the safest treatments don't involve drugs. [1] http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6450a3.htm http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6450a3.htm [2] http://www.nps.org.au/publications/health-professional/health-news-evidence/2015/codeine-related-deaths http://www.nps.org.au/publications/health-professional/healt...

DanBC 10y ago

This site talks about the problems of opioids for long term pain. https://rcoa.ac.uk/faculty-of-pain-medicine/opioids-aware https://rcoa.ac.uk/faculty-of-pain-medicine/opioids-aware The medical community tends not to talk about addiction, but tolerance. People prescribed opiates for long term pain develop a tolerance for those opioids, and thus need more to get the same pain relief effect. Those patients then end up on very high doses of multiple opiates (which is almost certainly causing them harm, and poses significant risk of suicide, or accidental death (of them or people around them)) and still in pain. People with long term pain deserve better treatment - rapid access to pain management clinics; access to the wide variety of meds combined with psychological therapy and home adaptations. And, yes, opioids if those are the right choice.