Great thoughts.

It's only logical to sell hydrocodone alone, for full freedom to choose for the
doctor -- and the patient.

Michael Mooney

--- In PozHealth@yahoogroups.com, Liz Highleyman <liz@...> wrote:
>
> > So the "solution" in reaction to people who take too much
> > Acetaminophen is to propose banning Percocet (Oxycodone) and
> > Vicodin? To me this is another knee-jerk reaction void of common
> > sense. These pain-killers are invaluable to many people. What
> > will be next, Aspirin? Too much Aspirin can erode the stomach
> > lining.
>
> Acetaminophen/paracetamol even at the current recommended dose can cause
> liver toxicity in some people, especially if taken over several days.
> People with chronic hep B or C may be at greater risk (though studies
> are mixed). But most drugs can cause severe side effects in some people
> -- doesn't mean they should all be banned.
>
> A lot of acetaminophen overdoses are suicide attempts, so selling it
> with NAC wouldn't help, since those people wouldn't take the antidote. I
> wonder if you could co-formulate acetaminophen with NAC, since it's not
> harmful and lots of people use it as a supplement?
>
> Others boost their dose of Vicodin or Percocet to get more of the
> narcotic (either because the longer they use it, the more they need to
> control pain, or sometimes for recreational use), and end up getting too
> much acetaminophen in the process. If they can sell the combo by
> prescription without being Schedule II, I don't see why they can't sell
> hydrocodone alone, and then people who also wanted acetaminophen could
> take it separately.
>
> --
> Liz Highleyman
> Freelance journalist
> liz@...
> 415-305-0821
>