What is Vicodin?

History of Use

The combination of hydrocodone and acetaminophen as Vicodin was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for use as a brand-name oral prescription marketed by Abbott in 1983. Nonmedical Vicodin use has risen and is of great concern to the medical, public health, drug abuse prevention, and law enforcement fields. Many people unintentionally become hooked on the drug after they receive a prescription for the drug to address specific pain.

Users without prescriptions buy painkillers illegally on the street; steal from pharmacies, doctors, or dentists; or steal from family or friends who may be taking the drug as prescribed. According to the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, more than 22 million persons age twelve years and older had ever taken a prescription painkiller for a nonmedical reason.

Effects and Potential Risks

In addition to providing temporary pain relief, Vicodin has the potential to produce many adverse reactions. It may prompt drowsiness, mood changes, impairment of mental and physical abilities, itchiness, light-headedness, dizziness, sedation, nausea, vomiting, anxiety, and fear. Vicodin may be habit forming and can lead to abuse, addiction, physical dependence, and tolerance. At high doses, Vicodin can affect the respiratory, dermatological, and gastrointestinal systems.

Vicodin should not be taken concomitantly with alcohol and other central nervous system (CNS) depressants, such as antihistamines, antipsychotics, or antianxiety agents. The combination may produce an additive CNS depression.

The safety and effectiveness of Vicodin in children has yet to be determined. Pregnant women should not take Vicodin unless the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the fetus. Regular use of opioids by pregnant women could cause the fetus to be born physically dependent on the drug. For mothers who are breastfeeding, acetaminophen is excreted in small amounts in breast milk, although it is unknown if hydrocodone is secreted also. Use of Vicodin should be avoided in these cases because of the potential for serious adverse reactions in infants, although in deciding, one should consider the importance of the drug to the mother. Dosing of Vicodin in geriatric patients should be moderated as well.

Bibliography

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Karsmeyer, Pamela, and Henry R. Kranzler. Encyclopedia of Drugs, Alcohol, and Addictive Behavior. 3rd ed. Detroit: Macmillan, 2009. Print.

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McCoy, Krisha. “Opioid Addiction.” Ed. Michael Woods. Health Library. EBSCO, Jan. 2014. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.