Facts on oxycodone

Oxycodone has a number of different names, such as Oxy, O, OC, Oxycotton, Killers, and even Hillbilly Heroin, and kills dozens of Canadians a year.

It can be so highly addictive that its manufacturer, Purdue Pharma, took steps earlier this year to stop abuse of the drug. On March 1, it took OxyContin – the popular, time-released formula of oxycodone – off the market and replaced it with OxyNEO, a new formula.

“Having received a notice of compliance from Health Canada in August 2011, OxyNEO will be replacing OxyContin on the Canadian market prompting questions regarding its ability to deter abuse, how to integrate the new formulation into clinical practice, and how to identify candidates for therapy,” the company said in a press release earlier this year.

The company says while OxyNEO offers the same effectiveness as OxyContin, the new pill has been designed with a “tamper-resistant formulation.” The OxyNEO tablet is apparently difficult to crush into a powder, therefore less prone to abuse.

If it is combined with water, the mixture becomes a viscous gel, making it difficult to inject.

The Ontario Health Ministry removed OxyContin from the Ontario Drug Benefit formulary back on February 29. As a result, OxyNEO is now funded through the province’s Exceptional Access Program – a change which means the prescription of the drug will fall under tighter controls.

All OxyContin coverage for Ontario patients ended April 2, and OxyNEO will be provided to them until April 2013.  If the drug is required after that time, the patient will need approval through the Exceptional Access Program.

Earlier this year, Saskatchewan also took measures to try to prevent oxycodone abuse, by limiting coverage to people suffering from chronic pain or dying of cancer.  

On November 19, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq rejected a plea to ban a generic form of OxyContin, saying federal laws don’t allow regulators to simply ban a drug just because some people abuse the medication.

As a result, Health Canada will allow six companies to produce a generic version of OxyContin, which will adapt the old formulation of the painkiller that is apparently easier to tamper with.

WHAT IS OXYCODONE?

Oxycodone (scientifically known as oxycodone hydrochloride) is a drug used to treat moderate to severe pain. chronic pain or terminal cancer pain.

The potentially highly addictive drug belongs to a group of medications known as opioid analgesics (narcotic pain relievers).  It is considered similar to morphine in terms of its addictive qualities, but closer to codeine in chemical composition.

In 1995, Purdue Pharma introduced OxyContin, designed to manage pain with a formula that released one dose of oxycodone over many hours.  However, abusers quickly discovered they could defeat the timed-release feature by crushing the pills.

Other oxycodone medications are known as Dazidox, Oxyfast, OxyIR, Percolone, Roxicodone, Roxicodone Intensol, M-Oxy, ETH-Oxydose, Endocodone.

Oxycodone has been combined with other painkillers, such as acetaminophen or acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), to create other medications, such as Percocet (generically known as Endocet and Oxycocet). There is typically 2.5 to 5 milligrams in one tablet of Percocet.

Short-acting painkillers branded as Supeudol and Oxy IR contain 5, 10 or even 20 milligrams of oxycodone.

Higher dosages of oxycodone are available in OxyContin. One pill can contain anywhere from 10 to 80 milligrams of oxycodone. OxyContin is a long-acting or time-released pain medication, meaning it is slowly released into the body.

Doctors say older adults are more likely to experience side-effects of taking oxycodone. Patients are warned not to mix it with alcohol, as the side-effects are dangerous, or possibly even lethal.

Oxycodone may also impair your judgment and attention, so driving while on the drug is not recommended.

Like morphine, people can abuse and become addicted to oxycodone. Due to its strength, patients are warned not to stop taking oxycodone suddenly, or they’ll experience unpleasant feelings of withdrawal. Instead, once patients are feeling better, they should consult with their doctor to properly wean off the medication.

As OxyContin is designed to be released into the body slowly, some people will try to get high off the drug by chewing the pill.  Others will crush the pill, so they can smoke or snort it.  Addicts have also been known to crush the pill, mix it with water and inject it into their body to experience a “heroin-like euphoria.”

The OxyNEO tablet’s supposed indestructible qualities are supposed to prevent all of that.

Not every province has released data on oxycodone-related deaths. But the National Post obtained figures from four jurisdictions.

In B.C., there were 37 deaths connected to oxycodone in 2009. That same year in Ontario, 143 people died in cases related to the oxycodone; in comparison, 35 people died in 2002.

Between 2005 and 2009, New Brunswick saw between three and 10 overdose deaths a year attributed to oxycodone, or that drug and others.

Nova Scotia had at least six and up to 11 solely oxycodone-related deaths a year from 2007 to 2010 and as many as 48 attributed generally to opioids, including oxycodone.

With files from The Canadian Press and the National Post