FDA panel votes for prescribing naloxone with opioids

JacksinPA said:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...escribing-naloxone-with-opioids-idUSKBN1OH2CA

(Reuters) - An advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday recommended prescribing the opioid overdose reversal drug, naloxone, along with addictive painkilllers.

The panel, which concluded a two-day discussion on ways to make the potentially life-saving drug readily available, voted 12-11 in favor of labeling changes for opioids that recommend co-prescribing the overdose antidote.
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What a great idea! Suddenly the light bulbs over their heads must have suddenly gone on for them to come up with such a common sense idea.

The problem with naloxone (aka NARCAN) is that many of the designer opioids liked fentanyl & carfentanyl are so powerful you will be on your way to meet St. Peter before you can reach for it. I've read that people into partying with designer opioids have a 'designated driver' system where the person with the NARCAN stays sober while the others get high. He or she is their safety person in case of an OD.

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Naloxone manufacturers that presented at the advisory committee meeting were all in favor of co-prescribing naloxone with opioids

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The Mark said:

I have a concern that this is just an excuse to not reduce the prescription levels, and allow pharmaceutical companies to sell more drugs (now opioids AND their antidote).

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Thoreau72 said:

Exactly my thoughts. This recommendation is a boon for pharma.

Arguably a very good idea for safety for the users, but a boon for pharma.

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JacksinPA said:

It would be a great idea to develop & market an auto-injector for the NARCAN. It would measure your vital signs so that when you ODed it would shoot you up with NARCAN. Problem I see with this is that sometimes people are so ODed that it requires 3-4 NARCAN shots to bring them around.

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A record number of drug overdose deaths occurred in 2016: 63,632, a rate of 19.8 per 100,000 persons.
Although deaths might have involved more than one drug, prescription and/or illicit opioids were
involved in 66.4% (42,249) of these drug overdose fatalities. Among opioid-involved deaths, the most
commonly involved drugs were synthetic opioids other than methadone (a category that is primarily illicitly
manufactured fentanyl, based on epidemiologic evidence) (19,413 deaths), followed by prescription opioids
(17,087 deaths), and heroin (15,469 deaths). Prescription opioids included deaths involving natural and semisynthetic opioids (14,487 deaths) and methadone (3,373 deaths). Cocaine was involved in 10,375 deaths

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Accidental prescription drug overdoses do happen. Patients with chronic pain, such as those dealing with cancer or arthritis, are typically prescribed strong, long-acting painkillers like OxyContin. If they inadvertently take too many pills in one day, they can overdose without being addicted to their prescription. Individuals suffering from insomnia may drink alcohol or take other medications that interact with their sleep aid medication, causing them to overdose. Children’s bodies cannot process medications as rapidly as adults, and they cannot metabolize doses as large as adults, so if they accidentally ingest an adult’s prescription, they can overdose. Elderly people with prescription medications, particularly those who have dementia, may accidentally take too much of their prescriptions and suffer an overdose.

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JacksinPA said:

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...escribing-naloxone-with-opioids-idUSKBN1OH2CA

(Reuters) - An advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday recommended prescribing the opioid overdose reversal drug, naloxone, along with addictive painkilllers.

The panel, which concluded a two-day discussion on ways to make the potentially life-saving drug readily available, voted 12-11 in favor of labeling changes for opioids that recommend co-prescribing the overdose antidote.
==================================
What a great idea! Suddenly the light bulbs over their heads must have suddenly gone on for them to come up with such a common sense idea.

The problem with naloxone (aka NARCAN) is that many of the designer opioids liked fentanyl & carfentanyl are so powerful you will be on your way to meet St. Peter before you can reach for it. I've read that people into partying with designer opioids have a 'designated driver' system where the person with the NARCAN stays sober while the others get high. He or she is their safety person in case of an OD.

Click to expand...

Mr Person said:

Well, not just that... it can take several NARCAN shots in quick succession to save someone who would otherwise have only needed one shot were it heroin.

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