Prescription Painkiller Addiction
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National Surveys on Drug Use and Health indicate that the nonmedical use of prescription pain relievers (analgesics) among persons aged 12 or older did not differ significantly among the years between 2002 and 2005. The number of persons who used prescription pain relievers nonmedically for the first time in the past year of the survey also did not differ significantly - - with 2.3 million persons initiating use in 2002, 2.4 million in 2003, 2.4 million in 2004 and 2.2 million in 2005.

Combined data from 2002 to 2005 were used to examine the patterns of nonmedical prescription pain reliever use in general and the nonmedical use specifically of oxycodone and hydrocodone products. Oxycodone products include Percocet®, Percodan®, Tylox®, OxyContin®, and other pain relievers containing oxycodone that respondents specified that they used nonmedically. Hydrocodone products include Vicodin®, Lortab®, Lorcet®/LorcetPlus®, generic hydrocodone, and other pain relievers containing hydrocodone that respondents specified.

An annual average of 4.8% of persons aged 12 or older (11.4 million persons) used a prescription pain reliever nonmedically in the 12 months prior to the survey.

Of the persons aged 12 or older who first used pain relievers nonmedically in the past year, 57.7% used hydrocodone products and 21.7% used oxycodone products.

Additionally, there has been an increase in recent years in the number of people being prescribed methadone for chronic pain relief. Methadone is one of the most addictive and deadly prescription drugs available. It is also one of the most difficult painkillers to withdraw from, as the lingering effects of methadone can remain for months causing joint aches and soreness as well as delayed sleeplessness.