Hydrocodone, also known as dihydrocodeinone, is an opioid used to treat pain and as a cough suppressant. It is taken by mouth. Typically it is dispensed as the combination acetaminophen/hydrocodone or ibuprofen/hydrocodone for pain severe enough to require an opioid and in combination with homatropine methylbromide to relieve cough. It is also available by itself in a long-acting form under the brand name Zohydro ER, among others, to treat severe pain of a prolonged duration. Hydrocodone is a controlled drug, in the United States a Schedule II Controlled Substance.
Common side effects include dizziness, sleepiness, nausea, and constipation. Serious side effects may include low blood pressure, seizures, QT prolongation, respiratory depression, and serotonin syndrome. Rapidly decreasing the dose may result in opioid withdrawal. Use during pregnancy or breastfeeding is generally not recommended. Hydrocodone is believed to work by activating opioid receptors, mainly in the brain and spinal cord. Hydrocodone 10 mg is equivalent to about 10 mg of morphine by mouth.
Hydrocodone was patented in 1923, while the long-acting formulation was approved for medical use in the United States in 2013. It is most commonly prescribed in the United States, which consumed 99% of the worldwide supply as of 2010. In 2018, it was the 402nd most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 400,000 prescriptions. Hydrocodone is a semisynthetic opioid, converted from codeine or less often from thebaine. Production using genetically engineered yeasts has been developed but is not used commercially.
Hydrocodone is used to treat moderate to severe pain. In liquid formulations, it is used to treat cough. In one study comparing the potency of hydrocodone to that of oxycodone, it was found that it took 50% more hydrocodone to achieve the same degree of miosis (pupillary contraction). The investigators interpreted this to mean that oxycodone is about 50% more potent than hydrocodone.
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Opioids are substances that act on opioid receptors to produce morphine-like effects. Medically they are primarily used for pain relief, including anesthesia. Other medical uses include suppression of diarrhea, replacement therapy for opioid use disorder, reversing opioid overdose, and suppressing cough. Extremely potent opioids such as carfentanil are approved only for veterinary use. Opioids are also frequently used non-medically for their euphoric effects or to prevent withdrawal.
Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin produced by drying the latex of opium poppies (Papaver somniferum). It is mainly used as a pain medication, and is also commonly used recreationally, or to make other illicit opioids. There are numerous methods used to administer morphine: oral; sublingual; via inhalation; injection into a muscle, injection under the skin, or injection into the spinal cord area; transdermal; or via rectal suppository.
Codeine is an opiate and prodrug of morphine mainly used to treat pain, coughing, and diarrhea. It is also commonly used as a recreational drug. It is found naturally in the sap of the opium poppy, Papaver somniferum. It is typically used to treat mild to moderate degrees of pain. Greater benefit may occur when combined with paracetamol (acetaminophen) or a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) such as aspirin or ibuprofen. Evidence does not support its use for acute cough suppression in children or adults.
For several years, drugs with reactive electrophilic appendages have been developed. These units typically confer prolonged residence time of the drugs on their protein targets, and may assist targeting shallow binding sites and/or improving the drug-prote ...