codeine

How to Avoid Opioid Addiction When You’re Prescribed Pain Medication

by

Have you been prescribed pain medication, but worry that you might become addicted to it? This fear is common, and it’s also valid. Some pain medications can alter your brain in a way that doesn’t just keep the pain away, but can leave your body craving more than you once needed to have the same effect. Long-term use of pain medication, especially, can cause an addiction. Here’s what you need to know to avoid becoming addicted to your pain medication. What Pain Medications are Addictive? From drugs to help prevent migraines to prescriptions for menstrual pain, there is a medication for just about any type of pain you can have, from mild to severe. Some pose a rare chance of an addiction, whereas others can have more serious consequences. Unfortunately, virtually any medication carries a risk of causing an addiction … Read more

Comparing Narcotic Prescribing Habits For Oral Surgeons in the U.S. and Canada

by

In a previous blog post titled “Do Oral Surgeons Prescribe Too Many Narcotics for use after Wisdom Teeth Removal?” the issue explored was that of whether or not oral surgeons prescribe more than an adequate amount of narcotic pain killers to young adults after wisdom teeth extraction. The article that found around 25% or so of the study respondents prescribe what the authors of the article declared as too many narcotics to control pain which opened the possibility of non-medical use. A new article titled “Comparison of Narcotic Prescribing Habits and Other Methods of Pain Control by Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons in the United States and Canada,” sought to explore whether Canadian oral surgeons have similar narcotic prescribing habits. This article was written by Bruce R. Pynn and Daniel M. Laskin and appeared in the December 2014 issue of the … Read more