OxyContin® Abuse
OxyContin® is a powerful medication that contains a much larger amount of the active ingredient, oxycodone, than other prescription opioid pain relievers. OxyContin® is a semi-synthetic opioid analgesic prescribed for chronic or long-lasting pain. The medication’s active ingredient is oxycodone. OxyContin® contains between 10 and 80 milligrams (mg) of oxycodone in a timed release tablet, providing as many as 12 hours of pain relief. It is often prescribed for cancer patients or those with chronic, long-lasting pain.
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, misuse of OxyContin® among people in the United States ages 12 and older significantly increased every year from 2002 to 2006. In 2006, approximately 4 million people ages 12 and older reported using OxyContin® for nonmedical uses at least once in their lifetime, and more than 500,000 were new nonmedical users.
Abuse of prescription pain medications is not new. However, the powerful strength of OxyContin® sets it apart from other prescription drug abuse. OxyContin® contains a much larger amount of the active ingredient, oxycodone, than other prescription pain relievers making it more dangerous when abused. It was designed as a controlled release tablet. However, by crushing the tablet and either ingesting or snorting it or by injecting diluted OxyContin®, people who abuse the opioid feel its powerful effects in a short time, rather than over a 12-hour span. Those who abuse OxyContin® have compared this feeling to the euphoria they experience when taking heroin. In fact, in some areas, the use of heroin is overshadowed by the abuse of OxyContin®.
How to Know if Someone Is Abusing OxyContin®
You might need help if you or a loved one:
- Take more than is needed for pain control or a higher dose than prescribed by your doctor
- Take OxyContin® to get high
- Use OxyContin® for a longer period of time than prescribed by your doctor
- Seek excessive pain medication after pain management has been achieved
- Develop an increased tolerance for OxyContin®
- Continue use of OxyContin® to avoid withdrawal
- Go to great lengths to get the drug, including robbing pharmacies and writing false prescriptions
- Continued use of OxyContin® in spite of clearly adverse consequences
- Demonstrate overall loss of control or obsessive-compulsive drug seeking behavior
The withdrawal syndrome for OxyContin® often includes insomnia, anxiety, diarrhea, flulike symptoms, restlessness, tearing, runny nose, yawning, sweating, muscle spasms, back aches, abdominal cramps, and vomiting. It is not safe to stop taking OxyContin® all at once. Instead, dosages should be tapered down under the supervision of a doctor.
Information provided by SAMHSA