Oxycodone and Acetaminophen (Page 2 of 5)

Respiratory Depression

Respiratory depression is a hazard with the use of oxycodone, one of the active ingredients in Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets, as with all opioid agonists. Elderly and debilitated patients are at particular risk for respiratory depression as are non-tolerant patients given large initial doses of oxycodone or when oxycodone is given in conjunction with other agents that depress respiration. Oxycodone should be used with extreme caution in patients with acute asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), cor pulmonale, or preexisting respiratory impairment. In such patients, even usual therapeutic doses of oxycodone may decrease respiratory drive to the point of apnea. In these patients alternative non-opioid analgesics should be considered, and opioids should be employed only under careful medical supervision at the lowest effective dose.

In case of respiratory depression, a reversal agent such as naloxone hydrochloride may be utilized (see OVERDOSAGE).

Head Injury and Increased Intracranial Pressure

The respiratory depressant effects of opioids include carbon dioxide retention and secondary elevation of cerebrospinal fluid pressure, and may be markedly exaggerated in the presence of head injury, other intracranial lesions or a pre-existing increase in intracranial pressure. Oxycodone produces effects on pupillary response and consciousness which may obscure neurologic signs of worsening in patients with head injuries.

Hypotensive Effect

Oxycodone may cause severe hypotension particularly in individuals whose ability to maintain blood pressure has been compromised by a depleted blood volume, or after concurrent administration with drugs which compromise vasomotor tone such as phenothiazines. Oxycodone, like all opioid analgesics of the morphine-type, should be administered with caution to patients in circulatory shock, since vasodilation produced by the drug may further reduce cardiac output and blood pressure. Oxycodone may produce orthostatic hypotension in ambulatory patients.

Hepatoxicity

Acetaminophen has been associated with cases of acute liver failure, at times resulting in liver transplant and death. Most of the cases of liver injury are associated with the use of acetaminophen at doses that exceed 4000 milligrams per day, and often involve more than one acetaminophen containing product. The excessive intake of acetaminophen may be intentional to cause self-harm or unintentional as patients attempt to obtain more pain relief or unknowingly take other acetaminophen-containing products.

The risk of acute liver failure is higher in individuals with underlying liver disease and in individuals who ingest alcohol while taking acetaminophen.

Instruct patients to look for acetaminophen or APAP on package labels and not to use more than one product that contains acetaminophen. Instruct patients to seek medical attention immediately upon ingestion of more than 4000 milligrams of acetaminophen per day, even if they feel well.

Serious Skin Reactions

Rarely, acetaminophen may cause serious skin reactions such as acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP), Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS), and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), which can be fatal. Patients should be informed about the signs of serious skin reactions, and use of the drug should be discontinued at the first appearance of skin rash or any other sign of hypersensitivity.

Hypersensitivity / Anaphylaxis

There have been post-marketing reports of hypersensitivity and anaphylaxis associated with use of acetaminophen. Clinical signs including swelling of the face, mouth, and throat, respiratory distress, urticaria, rash, pruritus, and vomiting. There were infrequent reports of life-threatening anaphylaxis requiring emergency medical attention. Instruct patients to discontinue Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets immediately and seek medical care if they experience these symptoms. Do not prescribe Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets for patients with acetaminophen allergy.

PRECAUTIONS

General

Opioid analgesics should be used with caution when combined with CNS depressant drugs, and should be reserved for cases where the benefits of opioid analgesia outweigh the known risks of respiratory depression, altered mental state, and postural hypotension.

Acute Abdominal Conditions

The administration of Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets or other opioids may obscure the diagnosis or clinical course in patients with acute abdominal conditions.

Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets should be given with caution to patients with CNS depression, elderly or debilitated patients, patients with severe impairment of hepatic, pulmonary, or renal function, hypothyroidism, Addison’s disease, prostatic hypertrophy, urethral stricture, acute alcoholism, delirium tremens, kyphoscoliosis with respiratory depression, myxedema, and toxic psychosis.

Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets may obscure the diagnosis or clinical course in patients with acute abdominal conditions. Oxycodone may aggravate convulsions in patients with convulsive disorders, and all opioids may induce or aggravate seizures in some clinical settings.

Following administration of Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets, anaphylactic reactions have been reported in patients with a known hypersensitivity to codeine, a compound with a structure similar to morphine and oxycodone. The frequency of this possible cross-sensitivity is unknown.

Interactions with Other CNS Depressants

Patients receiving other opioid analgesics, general anesthetics, phenothiazines, other tranquilizers, centrally-acting anti-emetics, sedative-hypnotics or other CNS depressants (including alcohol) concomitantly with Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets may exhibit an additive CNS depression. When such combined therapy is contemplated, the dose of one or both agents should be reduced.

Interactions with Mixed Agonist/Antagonist Opiod Analgesics

Agonist/antagonist analgesics (i.e., pentazocine, nalbuphine, and butorphanol) should be administered with caution to a patient who has received or is receiving a course of therapy with a pure opioid agonist analgesic such as oxycodone. In this situation, mixed agonist/antagonist analgesics may reduce the analgesic effect of oxycodone and/or may precipitate withdrawal symptoms in these patients.

Ambulatory Surgery and Postoperative Use

Oxycodone and other morphine-like opioids have been shown to decrease bowel motility. Ileus is a common postoperative complication, especially after intra-abdominal surgery with use of opioid analgesia. Caution should be taken to monitor for decreased bowel motility in postoperative patients receiving opioids. Standard supportive therapy should be implemented.

Use in Pancreatic/Biliary Tract Disease

Oxycodone may cause spasm of the Sphincter of Oddi and should be used with caution in patients with biliary tract disease, including acute pancreatitis. Opioids like oxycodone may cause increases in the serum amylase level.

Tolerance and Physical Dependence

Tolerance is the need for increasing doses of opioids to maintain a defined effect such as analgesia (in the absence of disease progression or other external factors). Physical dependence is manifested by withdrawal symptoms after abrupt discontinuation of a drug or upon administration of an antagonist. Physical dependence and tolerance are not unusual during chronic opioid therapy.

The opioid abstinence or withdrawal syndrome is characterized by some or all of the following: restlessness, lacrimation, rhinorrhea, yawning, perspiration, chills, myalgia, and mydriasis. Other symptoms also may develop, including: irritability, anxiety, backache, joint pain, weakness, abdominal cramps, insomnia, nausea, anorexia, vomiting, diarrhea, or increased blood pressure, respiratory rate, or heart rate.

In general, opioids should not be abruptly discontinued (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION: Cessation of Therapy).

Information for Patients/Caregivers

The following information should be provided to patients receiving Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets by their physician, nurse, pharmacist, or caregiver:

  1. Do not take Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets if you are allergic to any of its ingredients.
  2. If you develop signs of allergy such as a rash or difficulty breathing stop taking Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets and contact your healthcare provider immediately.
  3. Do not take more than 4000 milligrams of acetaminophen per day. Call your doctor if you took more than the recommended dose.
  4. Patients should be aware that Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets contain oxycodone, which is a morphine-like substance.
  5. Patients should be instructed to keep Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets in a secure place out of the reach of children. In the case of accidental ingestions, emergency medical care should be sought immediately.
  6. When Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets are no longer needed, the unused tablets should be destroyed by flushing down the toilet.
  7. Patients should be advised not to adjust the medication dose themselves. Instead, they must consult with their prescribing physician.
  8. Patients should be advised that Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets may impair mental and/or physical ability required for the performance of potentially hazardous tasks (e.g., driving, operating heavy machinery).
  9. Patients should not combine Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets with alcohol, opioid analgesics, tranquilizers, sedatives, or other CNS depressants unless under the recommendation and guidance of a physician. When co-administered with another CNS depressant, Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets can cause dangerous additive central nervous system or respiratory depression, which can result in serious injury or death.
  10. The safe use of Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets during pregnancy has not been established; thus, women who are planning to become pregnant or are pregnant should consult with their physician before taking Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets.
  11. Nursing mothers should consult with their physicians about whether to discontinue nursing or discontinue Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets because of the potential for serious adverse reactions to nursing infants.
  12. Patients who are treated with Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets for more than a few weeks should be advised not to abruptly discontinue the medication. Patients should consult with their physician for a gradual discontinuation dose schedule to taper off the medication.
  13. Patients should be advised that Oxycodone and Acetaminophen Tablets are a potential drug of abuse. They should protect it from theft, and it should never be given to anyone other than the individual for whom it was prescribed.

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