What is Oxycontin?

Oxycontin is a brand-name prescription narcotic pain reliever that was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 1995. The active ingredient in Oxycontin is oxycodone, a derivative of opium. It is analogous to morphine, but is a continuous release over 24 hours – thus giving users a very high risk of addiction or habituation.¹

Does Oxycontin work?

Published studies report that oxycodone, the active ingredient in Oxycontin, reduced pain and performed better than placebo.²

Some patients have reported developing a tolerance to their dosage of Oxycontin, requiring them to get an increase to get the same relief from pain.³

What should I go over with my doctor before I decide to take Oxycontin?

Oxycontin’s side effects can include constipation, nausea, sleepiness, vomiting, tiredness, headache, dizziness and abdominal pain.⁴

Oxycontin is addictive and misuse or overdose can be fatal. Oxycontin’s addictive effects are similar to alcohol and heroin. Long-term use of Oxycontin and other oxycodone drugs “eventually change the brain in such a way that a user cannot quit on his or her own, a typical sign of addiction.”⁵

A national survey done in 2008 reported that approximately half a million people in the US used Oxycontin “non-medically” for the first time that year.⁶ In 2010 the FDA approved a new time-release formula of Oxycontin, which was intended to discourage recreational use.⁷

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control reported that unintentional prescription drug overdose was the second leading cause of injury or death in the US, after motorcycle accidents. In a study in Florida, oxycodone preparations, including Oxycontin, were responsible for an increase of more than 264% in overdose deaths between 2003 and 2009.⁸

What if I’m already taking Oxycontin?

Talk to your doctor if you’re concerned about Oxycontin or if you experience any side effects.

Learn everything you can about Oxycontin before you start taking it.

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¹ Food and Drug Administration, “Oxycontin – Questions and Answers” (5 April 2010), http://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/PostmarketDrugSafetyInformationforPatientsandProviders/ucm207196.htm#1
² Clin J Pain., Hale ME, “Efficacy and safety of controlled-release versus immediate-release oxycodone: randomized, double-blind evaluation in patients with chronic back pain” (September 1999 ), http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10524470; J Rheumatol., Caldwell HR, “Treatment of osteoarthritis pain with controlled release oxycodone or fixed combination oxycodone plus acetaminophen added to nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs: a double blind, randomized, multicenter, placebo controlled trial” (April 1999), http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10229408; J Pain Symptom Manage., Salzman RT, “Can a controlled-release oral dose form of oxycodone be used as readily as an immediate-release form for the purpose of titrating to stable pain control?” (October 1999), http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10534967
³ Healthboards.com, Pain Management Message Boards (retrieved 7 September 2012), http://www.healthboards.com/boards/pain-management/391703-effectiveness-oxycontin.html
⁴ Food and Drug Administration, Medication Guide Oxycontin, (July 2012) http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/DrugSafety/UCM208530.pdf
⁵ Center for Substance Abuse Research, “Oxycodone,” (retrieved 6 September 2012), http://www.cesar.umd.edu/cesar/drugs/oxycodone.asp
⁶ Food and Drug Administration, “FDA Approves New Formulation for Oxycontin,” (5 April 2010), http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm207480.htm
⁷ Food and Drug Administration, “FDA Approves New Formulation for Oxycontin,” (5 April 2010), http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm207480.htm
⁸ Centers for Disease Control, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, “Drug Overdose Deaths, Florida, 2002-2009″ (8 July 2011), http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6026a1.htm?s_cid=mm6026a1_w