FDA Panel Wants Tougher Restrictions on Opioids

[Justin]

ADELPHI, Md. (MedPage Today) -- An FDA advisory committee voted 25-10 to reject the agency's proposed plan to prevent inappropriate prescribing, misuse, and abuse of extended-release opioid painkillers, saying the plan lacks the teeth to stem the "public health crisis" of opioid addiction, overdose, and death...

FDA Panel Wants Tougher Restrictions on Opioids (click here for the full article at MedPage Today)

[runagain]

Justin,

You know that when used properly opioids help a lot of people reduce or eliminate their pain levels. There are still so many misconceptions about the pain medication and many of them are perpetuated in the health care industry.
I often feel like an addict when I go to pick up my pain pills at the pharmacy.
But I am not an addict; just a person in pain.

Last I read, something like 3 percent of the people taking pain medication for pain relief will become addicted to it. It may be less. I do not take pain medication for a high, but take it for pain relief. It does not give me a high. It just helps to relieve the pain.

It is already difficult to get the pain medication prescribed by my doctor. It is already tightly regulated.

Education in the form of telling people how to properly store the medicine, to keep it out of reach of children, and not to share with other people, would go a long way in reducing some of the accidental overdoses.
When I am in a lot of pain and am not thinking that clearly, I do a pain log, writing down what I took and when so I did so not to take too little or too much of my medicine.
I do not use a pill dispenser for each day of the week as I have young children in the house whom could easily get into the medication if I stored it that way. I watch how much medicine is in the bottles so I know how many pills are in the bottles each day.

If someone wants to purposefully overdose on pain medication, there is not much regulation can do about that.

I also keep track of how much tylenol or Acetaminophen is in the medication I take. The recommended limit per day is 4,000 mg or 4 grams.
It is being said lately that is too much.
Many over the counter medications contain acetaminophen so that must be taken into consideration.
Acetaminophen can cause liver damage or failure if too much is ingested.
Children can get fatal doses from one extra-strength tablet.

I regress. But any medication, whether it is over the counter or prescription should be handled with care.

[KBear]

Runagain- I couldn't agree more with everything you said.

[Justin]

Justin,

You know that when used properly opioids help a lot of people reduce or eliminate their pain levels. There are still so many misconceptions about the pain medication and many of them are perpetuated in the health care industry.
I often feel like an addict when I go to pick up my pain pills at the pharmacy.
But I am not an addict; just a person in pain.

Hey Runagain,

I do believe opioids have their place in the spectrum of treatment options for certain Spine Patients & Chronic Pain Patients. I was merely posting the article to benefit the SPS community on happenings with the FDA.

Be well.

[runagain]

Oh Justin,

I know that you do.
I am just concerned about the FDA panel making it tougher on people who play by the rules.
I really think, educating the public about medicines can go a long way to stem some of these accidental overdoses. I think it is so easy to lose track of how much medicine you are taking.
IMHO, I think they (the regulators) see a big increase of accidental deaths from opiates and they are grabbing at anything to stem this development.
If someone wants to take a drug illegally, there is not going to be much the FDA can do to stop that person. I just see it getting tougher for people with legitimate pain to get medication and I think that is sad.
I have been following the recent proceedings and I am just worried.
I mean how much tougher must the restrictions be?
And where do they step over the line of privacy?
I'm just thankful I have the access to the medications now as I don't know how I could survive without pain killers.
Yet, I cannot wait for the time when I am off these medications and I wonder how any sane person would want to be on them if they did not have pain.
I mean chronic constipation. Who wants that?
I don't know if they can stem the tide of the misuse of extended-release opiates.

R

[Cindylou]

runagain, all very good points and well said. My worries precisely.