Pain medicine use has nearly doubled

[mbossman2]

Legitimate use or are we a nation of wimps? (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070820/ap_on_he_me/world_of_pain)

WASHINGTON - Retail sales of five leading painkillers nearly doubled over the last eight years, reflecting a surge in use by patients nationwide who are living in a world of pain, according to a new Associated Press analysis of federal drug prescription data.

The analysis reveals that oxycodone usage is migrating out of Appalachia to areas such as Columbus, Ohio, and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and significant numbers of codeine users are living in many suburban neighborhoods around the country.

The amount of five major painkillers sold at retail establishments rose 90 percent between 1997 and 2005, according to Drug Enforcement Administration figures.

(or, as some in the article point out, are we a bunch of mindless drones falling, ala the "magic bullet" theory of communication, for the marketing campaigns of the drug companies?)

[WJWheels]

I'll stick with my old life-long (well most of my life, anyway) standby painkiller..... Vodka. :cool:

[eagle]

When ever I get injured and the doc. gives me pain meds I only take them if I absolutely have to. I’d rather build up my tolerance of pain than pop pills all the time and become a cry baby.

[GerBa]

If your kid gives you a headache pop a pain pill and give them Risperdal.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070822/ap_on_he_me/psychotic_drug;_ylt=ApuVyusYbkJiF7OKB4KM5Qes0NUE


The action permits use of Risperdal for schizophrenia in youths aged 13 to 17 and for bipolar disorder for those aged 10 to 17, FDA said.

It was approved last fall for treatment of irritability in autism.

Risperdal, manufactured by Janssen, L.P. of Titusville, N.J., is the No. 3 anti-psychotic drug with $2.3 billion in sales in 2005, according to the pharmaceutical data company IMS Health.

[David M]

Drugs are only harmful if they are abused. Using drugs to kill pain is not necessarily harmful. The title seems to blanket everyone when it really needs to be examined on a case by case basis.

[heyhey]

Legitimate use or are we a nation of wimps? (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070820/ap_on_he_me/world_of_pain)

WASHINGTON - Retail sales of five leading painkillers nearly doubled over the last eight years, reflecting a surge in use by patients nationwide who are living in a world of pain, according to a new Associated Press analysis of federal drug prescription data.

The analysis reveals that oxycodone usage is migrating out of Appalachia to areas such as Columbus, Ohio, and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and significant numbers of codeine users are living in many suburban neighborhoods around the country.

The amount of five major painkillers sold at retail establishments rose 90 percent between 1997 and 2005, according to Drug Enforcement Administration figures.

(or, as some in the article point out, are we a bunch of mindless drones falling, ala the "magic bullet" theory of communication, for the marketing campaigns of the drug companies?)
i never saw this post or would have responded sooner....

the class of pain killers you are talking about are not those being marketed by pharma companies... they are way out of brand name stage in sold in generic form...


marketing campaigs of drug campaies are currently markted at:
anti- erectile dysfunction drugs
new generation sleep medicine
prescription allrgery medicine
statins (anti high cholesterol medicine)
anti-depressants

and medications for disease specific target groups including but not limited to: resltess leg syndrome, rheumotoid arthritis, chemotherapy induced anemia, pulmonary hypertension etc etc...

therefore no you can't blame nartcotic utilization on pharma companies... but it can be blamed on our overall healthcare system...

sure there are abuses of narcotic analgesics but I think that this phenemenom is worsened by our current health care model which focuses on disease instead of wellness.. it not only envokes a "magic bullet" attitutude of our populus .. (go to the doctor when you get really sick or are having bad pain and get a pill instead of proactively managing your wellness through health lifestyle and preventitive medicine) but creates more and more people who have chronic pain from diseases not prevented or screened for and treated early like a wellness model would achieive...