(2) On September 15, 2011 at 5:47 am TSD -RAVEN- [279] said:
- Transferred from Answer page to Discussion Page - TSD_-RAVEN- Category Supervisor
- The only reason I know is because I have to be re-certified every year, for my job, which deals with dispensing medication. What I'll do to make it easier to read and absorb, is I'll list all the strong pain medication that I know of, then list the most common ones and some brief information like other names it's known by; approximate strength; and anything else important.
- Hydrocodone and codeine are not the same although they, in some ways, ACT the same. ALWAYS ask to speak to a registered pharmacict (Rph) and ask for a computer printout that will tell you EVERTHING about the medication you ever wanted to know and then some!!
- ADDED INFO
- IF YOU take 8 Tylenol #3, you are ingesting 2,600 mg of Tylenol, which is more than half of a safe dose in 24 hours. NOT GOOD for the liver! <<>>
- Hydrocodone and codeine are two separate medications. However, they have many similarities and are often confused as being the same:
- Similarities: each are opiate agonists (occupy opiate receptors in the human body), both possess analgesic (painkilling) and antitussive (cough suppressant) properties, both are controlled substances ranging from Schedule II-V, each is often combined with another medication such as another painkiller or antihistmine, each has a high addictive potential, both have the side effects of euphoria, drowsiness, wakefullnes (see 2008 PDR) and respiratory depression (in high doses) among others
- Differences: chemical structure is different, mechanism of action in the body is not exactly the same, codeine is actually a prodrug (inactive drug which is converted to an active drug in the body) of morphine - people with a deficiency of the enzyme in the liver which does this will not feel any therapeutic effects of codeine because it will not be converted to morphine in the body, hydrocodone is a slightly superior cough suppressant than codeine and a much more potent painkiller than codeine, hydrocodone is more sedating than codeine, codeine can be given by mouth or IV while hydrocodone is most often given via the oral route
- May be more information than you were looking for, but I hope this last bit helps!
- Mostly good information here (maybe more technical than required), but a simple answer is: Hydrocodone and Codiene are different versions of the same drug. Basically, Codiene occurs in nature while Hydrocodone is man-made (in a lab) and has an extra Hydrogen molecule added. The important point is that they both work the same (at the same dosage) and your body doesn't know the difference.
- Also related are Morphine and Hydromorphone. Whatever the name or composition of the medication is doesn't matter, since the body converts mosts opiates into Morphine (including heroin), to be used by the brain.
- Cautions
- Codeine is NEVER given by IV as it can cause pulmonary edema and result in death. One should never inject codeine under any circumstances whatsoever, and a hospital or doctor would never, ever, administer IV codeine.
- Hydro may be given by IV, but typically is not.
- With respect to hydrocodone and codeine, the argument is a frequent one, but one which is largely irrelevant. Hydrodone is stronger per milligram, but a typical hydrocodone dose is 5mg. A typical codeine does is 30mg.
- The fact that hydrocodone is 6x stronger is largely irrelevant to the end user, because DOSE is the most important aspect of pain relief, and codeine tablets typically contain 6 times as much drug as hydrocodone tablets contain.
(1) On April 16, 2009 at 5:37 am VictorD-Town [0] said:
- Codeine is a pain reliever of the yester-generation, now that legalization of Medical Marihuana is sweeping the country. In studies I have looked at the University of San Diego, Southern CA, all 20 of 20 patients received the same amount of pain relief from Marihuana's affects-100% tested received a better relief from pain from Marihuana than Codeine..
- Vicodin aka Hydrocodone is now a better remedy for the REAL pain of today that is need of relief. Preferably par tylenol(NORCO)is better, the tylenol aka acetimeniphine is harder on the liver, kidneys, and other vital organs-so the least tylenol taken in a day, or over a long period of time is more beneficial for a patient that is in pain.
- Marihuana helps to intensify the relief of pain in conjunction with the Hydrocodone. If you want to remain good to your body, reduce pain without hard side effects short, or long term; I suggest this.
Sign in to add your own comment. (This only takes a few seconds.)
