Oxycodone
Learn more about oxycodone, the potent opioid prescribed as an analgesic.
Overview
Common Nicknames
OxyContin, Roxicodone, Percocet, hillbilly heroin
Drug Class
Semi-Synthetic Opioids
Drug Form
Capsule, liquid, tablet
Route of Administration
Swallowed
What is the science of Oxycodone?
Oxycodone is a semi-synthetic opioid and analgesic, 10-12 times stronger than codeine. It is indicated for moderate to severe pain and targets the mu, kappa, and delta opioid receptors in the brain, meaning it is a strong pain-reliever. Oxycodone, similarly to other opioids, also suppresses your cough reflex, and acts on the respiratory, endocrine, and immune systems. It’s effects on the respiratory system are dose dependent respiratory depression, which means that high doses can cause you to stop breathing. Your pupils will decrease in size and muscle tone will increase in the colon causing constipation. You may sweat, flush red, and have decreased cortisol and testosterone.
What are the risks?
Toxicity can cause coma, sleepiness, cold sweats, brachycardia (slow heart rate), hypotension (low blood pressure), and death. In the case of an overdose there are some drugs that can be given, and the focus should be to keep airways open and ventilated. The effects of this drug are intense and has led to many deaths. Additionally, it is a very addictive drug which carries its own risks. Oxycodone can also cause severe allergic reactions leading to breathing issues, swelling, joint pain, and sometimes death.
How might the drug make you feel?
Many users report feelings of euphoria when taking opioid drugs. But there are many side effects including nausea, headache, itching, constipation, dizziness, dry mouth, sweating, and stomach pain.
Is Oxycodone addictive, and what are the long-term effects?
Yes, oxycodone is a strong semi-synthetic opioid which is classed as highly addictive. It will lead to tolerance meaning you need more of the drug to feel the same effects, and withdrawal symptoms both psychological and physical.
Aside from addiction and mental health issues, long-term use of oxycodone can also disrupt your hormonal balance, your gastrointestinal system, your immune system, and cause organ damage. Long-term use is never recommended.
Harm Reduction and Drug-Drug Interactions
Many overdoses from oxycodone and OxyContin come from users crushing an extended release form of the drug. Because these are designed to give you a stable dose over a longer period of time, having this all at once can overload the body, and cause coma or death. Another common cause of harm is dissolving the tablets and injecting the drug. Injecting any drug is risky and can cause significant harm. The drug will enter your bloodstream extremely quickly, which can cause overdose, but there are also significant dangers of injecting which can cause infection and could lead to blood borne diseases being transmitted. Additionally, oxycodone is extremely addictive and can cause psychological issues, and physical withdrawal symptoms.
Oxycodone, when prescribed, should be taken with food to maintain blood levels of the medicine consistent. Do not mix with alcohol as this will increase you risk of overdose and death. Oxycodone has many drug-drug interactions, you can find a list of these here.
Medical Uses
It is sometimes prescribed in America as an analgesic where weaker opioids do not fully relieve the pain. It is available usually in pill form as either a single dose or extended-release tablets. Many synthetic opioids are not prescribed in the UK due to their addiction potential, and northern America has seen high rates of opioid addiction and deaths resulting from the opioid epidemic public health crisis.
Myths and Misconceptions
Anyone who takes prescription opioids has an addiction
Addictions arise from loss of control, if prescriptions drugs are taken as per doctors’ instructions, then they will not cause an addiction. If you are not in pain, and don’t need the drug, then the effects of the drug can lead to addiction; therefore you should always only take them if and how they are prescribed to you.
History
Oxycodone was first indicated for pain in the 1950s, it is more commonly prescribed in America for moderate to severe pain. In the 1990s, OxyContin (contin for continuous) was developed as an extended release form of the drug. It was pushed heavily by pharmaceutical companies, with sales reaching $1 billion by 2000. However, widespread abuse of the drug soon started, and overdose deaths began to rise, as the opioid epidemic spread across North America. Purdue Pharma faced numerous lawsuits and reformulated the drug, making it harder to crush and harder to dissolve and therefore inject. However, this led many users switch to different synthetic and cheap street opioids, such as the much stronger and fatal fentanyl and heroin, overall exacerbating the crisis.