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As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

arstechnica.com

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Re: As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

#2
an initial prescription of just a few days' worth of pills can trap patients into using the highly addictive, often deadly drugs for a year or more

I call BS on this. Maybe if you have an unresolved underlying chronic pain, this could be true. But many people get a hydrocodone prescription after surgery or dental work and do not go on to become addicts.

And no, Tylenol is not great for acute pain. It does very little for me in fact. Ibuprofen or aspirin work better in my experience.

Re: As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

#4
Agreed that opiods are overprescribed, but for acute pain there's no comparison. At least in my experience.

I was rushed to the ER with an excruciating condition, and i popped quite a bit of ibuprofen at home before going to the hospital (i think 4-6?). Nothing.

In the triage room or whatever, that morphine drip (plus saline IV to replace all fluid i vomited up due to pain) made the 8/10 pain reduce to a 2-3/10, allowing me to bear with it until i was put under general anesthesia for surgery.

Re: As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

#5
post #2

an initial prescription of just a few days' worth of pills can trap patients into using the highly addictive, often deadly drugs for a year or more I call BS on this. Maybe if you have an unresolved underlying chronic pain, this could be true. But many people get a hydrocodone prescription after surgery or dental work and do not go on to become addicts. And no, Tylenol is not great for acute pain. It does very little…

Well, it's so vague that it's impossible to draw much conclusion. The word 'can' could mean 'at least one' person had that experience.

Re: As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

#8
post #2

an initial prescription of just a few days' worth of pills can trap patients into using the highly addictive, often deadly drugs for a year or more I call BS on this. Maybe if you have an unresolved underlying chronic pain, this could be true. But many people get a hydrocodone prescription after surgery or dental work and do not go on to become addicts. And no, Tylenol is not great for acute pain. It does very little…

I've met a few people who got addicted to pain killers at 15/16 years old. It started with a small prescription after dental surgery or similar, their parents left them to their own devices to take meds as needed. When the prescription was up they then went out and bought it on the street because they wanted the feeling to keep going. Some people are simply vulnerable, and even a little temptation is too much.

Re: As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

#9

Agreed that opiods are overprescribed, but for acute pain there's no comparison. At least in my experience. I was rushed to the ER with an excruciating condition, and i popped quite a bit of ibuprofen at home before going to the hospital (i think 4-6?). Nothing. In the triage room or whatever, that morphine drip (plus saline IV to replace all fluid i vomited up due to pain) made the 8/10 pain reduce to a 2-3/10, allo…

They didn’t say opioids are no better than either acetaminophen or ibuprofen; they said that opioids are no better than the combination of ibuprofen with acetaminophen — something very rarely prescribed (and usually advised against on the labels of both drugs.)

Re: As epidemic rages, ER study finds opioids no better than Advil and Tylenol

#10
Yeah, look, I staggered into the ER with a shattered collar-bone and a shitload of missing skin, and 10 mg of oxy had me feeling pretty much FINE while a nurse took a coarse sponge to scrub the asphalt out of my wounds.

Overprescribed, yes. Comparable to OTC? Absolutely fucking not. Claiming that ibuprofen is as effective as diluadid or morphine is completely disingenuous.

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