Codeine

Overview

Codeine is an opioid pain relief medicine that is used to manage mild to moderately severe pain. Doctors prescribe this to an individual to buy Codeine Online or at any pharmacy or at the hospital to treat pain. It changed the way of work of brain and nervous system respond to pain. Codeine medicine is also available in combination with acetaminophen, aspirin, etc as, and as an ingredient in many cold and cough medicines.

Uses of Codeine:

Codeine belongs to a class of drugs which is called Opiate. This medication drug is used to relieve mild to moderate pain. It also helps in treating cough. Also, Codeine is used in combination with other drugs to reduce coughing.

The Pain relief medicine Codeine drug generally acts on the central nervous system (CNS) to reduce pain. Using codeine for a long period can lead to addiction and physical or mental dependence.

However, those who experience ongoing pain should not allow their fear of becoming dependent on drugs to prevent them from using narcotics as a pain reliever. Narcotics used for medical purposes are not likely to cause mental dependence or addiction.

Codeine is a prodrug

Codeine itself barely relieves pain. The liver converts about 5–10% of each dose into morphine using an enzyme called CYP2D6, and that morphine does most of the work.

How much CYP2D6 you have is set by your genes. That’s why the same prescription can do almost nothing for one person and be dangerous for another. Codeine’s half-life is about 3 hours, and pain relief typically lasts 4–6 hours.

Four people, one tablet

Imagine four adults each take the same 30 mg codeine tablet for a sprained ankle.

Person A: the normal metabolizer. Converts the expected small share to morphine. Gets modest pain relief, some drowsiness, maybe constipation. This is the person the label’s doses were designed for. Most people.

Person B: the intermediate metabolizer. Converts less. Gets somewhat weaker relief. May be tempted to take extra, which adds side effects without much more benefit.

Person C: the poor metabolizer. Has little or no working CYP2D6. Converts almost none to morphine and gets little or no pain relief, but still gets nausea and constipation from codeine itself. About 5–10% of people of European ancestry.

Person D: the ultra-rapid metabolizer. Has extra copies of the gene. Converts codeine to morphine fast and in large amounts. Even a normal dose can cause extreme sleepiness, confusion and dangerously slow breathing. The label estimates 1–10% of White people, 3–4% of Black people, and 16–28% of people of North African, Ethiopian and Arab ancestry.

What this means for you:

• If codeine has never worked for you, you may be like Person C. Tell your prescriber; a different medicine will likely work better. See Codeine vs. Hydrocodone and Codeine vs. Oxycodone.
• If codeine has ever made you unusually sleepy or confused at a normal dose, you may be like Person D. Avoid it, and tell every prescriber.
• Most people don’t know their CYP2D6 type. Pharmacogenetic testing exists but isn’t routine.

Tramadol depends on the same enzyme, so the same four people would respond differently to it too. See Tramadol vs. Codeine.

Age rules

These rules followed reports of children who died or nearly died after routine doses, most often after tonsil surgery, and a breastfed infant who died from morphine exposure.

One drug, three schedules

Codeine’s federal controlled-substance schedule depends on how much is in the product and what it’s combined with.

Schedule II means no refills; each fill needs a new prescription. Schedule III and V products can have limited refills. For the cough syrup specifically, see Codeine vs. Promethazine.

Doses of Codeine:

Codeine is a prescription-only drug and is available in different forms including oral tablets, liquid, and injections. The dosage strengths of Codeine are 15 mg, 30 mg, and 60 mg. These dosage strengths are followed by two chemical components namely, sulfate and phosphate.

The initial dose is 15 mg to 60 mg for adults suffering from pain, up to every 4 hours or as needed. Do not exceed this dose above 360mg in a day. Codeine is also available in syrup form, which comes in brand names like Linctus etc. to treat dry cough.

Note – Codeine injections are generally given only in hospitals.

Side Effects of Codeine:

Common side effects of Codeine are as follows:

• Sighing
• Noisy breathing
• Shallow breathing
• Slow heart rate
• Weak pulse
• Confusion
• Light-headed feeling
• Agitation
• Seizure
• Euphoria
• Nausea
• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting
• Worsening
• Dizziness
• Tiredness
• Suicidal thoughts
• Hallucination
• Weakness
• Unusual behavior

Remember that this medication drug has been prescribed because your healthcare professional has judged that the benefit to you is greater than the risk of side effects. Many people using this medication usually do not experience serious side effects.

Precautions:

• When taking any medication, if an individual shows signs of an allergic reaction then talk to a health specialist before taking this medication, because it contains a few inactive ingredients that lead to allergic reactions.
• If an individual deals with breathing problems, brain disorders, liver disease, Kidney disease, and gall bladder disease then consult with a health expert.
• Avoid alcohol during this medicine course.

Drug interactions (New Section)