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OxyContin's 12-hour problem

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Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#51
post #14
post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In many other countries, pain is treated without highly addictive opioids. Only in the US are they available at that scale.

Can you give me some examples or pointers to websites? I am interested in alternative pain treatments, because my condition still gives me a fair amount of pain, and I am open to trying new things :)

https://www.fpm.ac.uk/faculty-of-pain-medicine/opioids-aware

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg173/chapter/1-recommendat...

http://pathways.nice.org.uk/pathways/low-back-pain-early-man...

http://pathways.nice.org.uk/pathways/opioids-for-pain-relief...

(There's lots on NICE. That's the organisation that assesses effectiveness and cost effectiveness of treatments, and makes recommendations about whether they should be used in English National Health Service. I guess this is one of the "death panels" we have in this country.)

BBC Radio Four have a programme called Inside Health. They had an episode on the benefits of exercise, including exercise as a treatment for arthritis pain. Sadly, BBC geoblock some programmes. (I have no idea which ones either.) http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06vkg24

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#52
I haven't taken OxyContin but withdrawal symptoms and the concept of hell are interesting (well, afterwards at least).

It's like the mind has a thought, then checks to see how the body reacts (i.e. with joy or fear) and this in turn affects how the thought is interpreted, which then influences what is the next thought, etc.

The oxycontin or whatever temporarily cuts off this mind-body connection (without paralysis!) but eventually the fear comes back in a downward spiral. Even the appearance of everyday objects can then seem threatening and disturbing.

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#53
It's pretty depressing how casually people's lives are thrown away for money. I can't imagine how angry I'd be if I was dealing with a family member who was prescribed these increasingly higher doses of Oxycotin and going to doctor who refused to prescribe anything else because Purdue repts insisted it was safe and effective at 12 hour doses.

Guess the jokes on us though the Sackler family gets knighted and modern institutions like MoMA let them slap their name on buildings for $$$ so who's really any better.

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#54

> it appears they offered a cushy job to a > government official in exchange for favorable > regulatory treatment I suspect that that sentence is legally actionable as slander, as well as being an (apparently) completely baseless claim of illegal activity.

You mean libel. Slander is spoken, libel is written. The easy way to remember this distinction is to know that one of the most famous libel cases in history, nicknamed the "McLibel" case, concerned printed pamphlets.

Another way to remember is that "library" and "libel" both come from "liber", meaning "book" in Latin

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your dismissiveness is unwarranted and wrong. The whole reason the drug was developed because their patent on their current flagship drug was expiring. It's right there in the article. Oxycontin is essentially hydrocodone with a time-release mechanism. You need to demonstrate significant distance from existing medication in order to get a new patent. The entire debacle, soup to nuts, was driven by the patent system.…

The patent and the marketing didn't make hydrocodone less viable as an alternative. I mean, the doctors can see that information coming from the company can be problematic and be cautious of it. I guess they ideally shouldn't have to be, but that's not the world. Personally, I'd be fine dismantling Purdue for something like this. We need to start recognizing that large institutions make mistakes for reasons that can'…

I'm not opposed to that, but you also need to fix broken systems, otherwise the problem will recur.

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#56
post #44
post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In a similar vein, I got an entire bottle of vicodin prescribed to me after having Lasik surgery. There was virtually no pain, merely discomfort similar to having a dirty contact lens in your eye, which went away after a day. I never used any of the vicodin.

I got some of that crap years ago. I felt good for about a half an hour, then got really nauseas, which is not something you want after surgery. Switched to ibuprofen. Pre surgery morphine had the same effect. I am not a fan of opioids.

I'm the same way. After watching a friend deal with an opioid addiction I feel lucky to have that problem.

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#57
post #25
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What does it say?

It is the appearance of impropriety, straight out of any corporate anti-bribery ethics training. In this case, it appears they offered a cushy job to a government official in exchange for favorable regulatory treatment, leading a very lucrative business. It appears dirty but maybe can't be proven.

Another way to look at it was in working with Purdue, he was able to demonstrate his ability to define and walk around FDA approvals by understanding and guiding product language to get approval.

This is a valuable skill. Purdue probably wanted someone like that on their product development team who could influence drug design early on which would make it less costly and more efficient to get drugs approved in the future.

It's all business. Every actor wants more money and power, and are willing to play to their strengths to get there. No malice, obvious corruption, or bribery would even need to take place. Just smart motivated people trying to make a ton of money .... (without caring about the consequences).

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#58

> it appears they offered a cushy job to a > government official in exchange for favorable > regulatory treatment I suspect that that sentence is legally actionable as slander, as well as being an (apparently) completely baseless claim of illegal activity.

[deleted]

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#59
post #30

It's pretty crazy to see Purdue shills in the comments

They've got the money to pursue and settle potential court cases throughout the country. It doesn't surprise me that they have the money to hire people to troll the internet and shill for the company.

Re: OxyContin's 12-hour problem

#60
post #7

The pervasiveness of OC provided by doctors is amazing. Even as of a year ago, I went into the hospital for back pain and left with a script for two fist fulls of oxy. I looked at the doctor and legitimately thought he was trying to get me hooked. And this was at a world renowned hospital. I have to wonder if Purdue is involved in some kickbacks to Dr's who (over)prescribe.

It's kind of scary how quickly doctors seem to prescribe it. I've had a doctor prescribe me some for everything from the flu to a mild ankle sprain.

That being said, I always used to wonder if it was because I can't take any NSAIDs- it's acetaminophen or nothing for me. This usually means where they could get away with a big dose of Ibuprofin for pain and anti-inflammatory I wind up with oxycodone and prednisone. Which means I usually just gut it out after the first day or two.

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