Oklahomans use a lot of them. And, their use is increasing at a staggering rate. According to statistics from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the percentage of Oklahomans using five of the most common painkillers — codeine, hydrocodone, meperidine, morphine and oxycodone — jumped 145 percent from 1997 to 2005. That’s much higher than the national increase of 90 percent.
What is fueling this increase?
According to Dr. Jack Beller, past president of the Oklahoma State Medical Association and an orthopedic surgeon in Chickasha, the increase can be attributed to the state’s aging population, as well as an increased emphasis by doctors on pain management.
It’s a vicious cycle. Chronic pain is a terrible burden for anyone to bear. But, dependence on painkillers also is a burden. Some prescription painkillers — like Oxycontin, which includes oxycodone — are highly addictive. A few years ago, NFL star Brett Favre admitted and was treated for an addiction to Vicodin, a painkiller of which the active ingredient is hydrocodone.
Sadly, all of the increase in the use of these painkillers cannot be attributed to legal means.
Mark Woodward, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, said his agency’s workload for prescription drug fraud has been increasing for 10 years. The state has an estimated 87,000 prescription drug addicts, he said.
There is no easy answer to what we would call a crisis. Some people need relief from the pain just to be able to function.
However, we can send out a plea to physicians to be careful and vigilant to make sure they are not being used — so called doctor shopping — by people who are addicted to painkillers and are resorting to getting them by illegal means.
Perhaps extra oversight of these prescriptions is going to be necessary to get a real handle on the problem.
What is fueling this increase?
According to Dr. Jack Beller, past president of the Oklahoma State Medical Association and an orthopedic surgeon in Chickasha, the increase can be attributed to the state’s aging population, as well as an increased emphasis by doctors on pain management.
It’s a vicious cycle. Chronic pain is a terrible burden for anyone to bear. But, dependence on painkillers also is a burden. Some prescription painkillers — like Oxycontin, which includes oxycodone — are highly addictive. A few years ago, NFL star Brett Favre admitted and was treated for an addiction to Vicodin, a painkiller of which the active ingredient is hydrocodone.
Sadly, all of the increase in the use of these painkillers cannot be attributed to legal means.
Mark Woodward, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, said his agency’s workload for prescription drug fraud has been increasing for 10 years. The state has an estimated 87,000 prescription drug addicts, he said.
There is no easy answer to what we would call a crisis. Some people need relief from the pain just to be able to function.
However, we can send out a plea to physicians to be careful and vigilant to make sure they are not being used — so called doctor shopping — by people who are addicted to painkillers and are resorting to getting them by illegal means.
Perhaps extra oversight of these prescriptions is going to be necessary to get a real handle on the problem.
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