Duragesic Transdermal Patch

I have been on the Duragesic Transdermal Patch for years. I've never used the generic form, so I can't compare the two. I've been on Narcotics for many years, due to a chronic back, hip, and knee condition. The Duragesic Patch has been more effective than anything else. I've had it all...Percocet, Hydrocodone, Oxycotin, methadone...Unlike a pill, the medication doesn't wear off in 3 to 4 hours. Unlike pills, I don't suffer from nausea. I think the benefts of the patch outweigh any negative results from other narcotics. I only have one complaint about the Duragesic Patch...It won't stay stuck on me. It always falls off. However, the maker of patch, does offer overlay dressings, free of charge. The overlay dressing is a clear, thin sheet, that is applied over top of patch, adherring to the skin around the patch. Sometimes in the summer it causes a minor skin irriation. I would highly recomend the Duragesic Patch to anyone that takes narcotics for chronic pain.

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I am glad you have such good results from it, I totally understand, due to my own condition, how hard it is to find something that really works and how miserable it is to be in pain all the time and nothing helps.

However, I would just like to add a warning here, for people who are not used to taking narcotics, it is not safe, nor smart, to just jump to these patches. Especially if you have had adverse reactions to some narcotics.

I found out the hard way, when my doctor tried to jump me from Darvocet, a very mild naroctic pain reliever, to the 25mcg patches, that if you are not already tolerant to narcotics or are sensitive to them, these patches can cause serious problems.

Their half-life is 17 hours, so once you have worn it for that long, so 50% off the med is in your system, it will take over 30 hours to be completely expelled from your body, meaning the misery of a bad reaction is very prolonged. I put on one patch when she prescribed them for me, and one it hit my system I couldn't even hold down water, even after my doc gave me a scrip for a very strong anti-nausea med that is normally used for cancer patients. All I did was sleep and puke. Even after removing the patch, I was still sick for quite awhile, because of their long half-life.

So you really have to have a tolerance to narcotics built up to use these patches, they are 80 times stronger than morphine, which is why they are dosed in Micrograms, rather than mgs.

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Recently I started using the generic 75 along with the Brand 100 and I can't sleep! It's a cycle one night I sleep great but the day I change the patch that night I'm up all night long! I mean all night! It's been going on like this for 3 weeks now and I need answers! I've tried all the sleep meds that are avalible and now I don't no what to do??? Do you have any answers?

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Can you put opsite or tegaderm over a Duragesic patch to prevent them from falling off?

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In response to the patient who was having difficulty sleeping on the second and third day of their Fentanyl patch use, it may be of some benefit to discuss the possibility of switching to one patch every 48 hours with your physician. I had similar problems while using the patch for 72 hours at a time, and they stopped when I switched to one patch every 48 hours.
Regarding the stickiness of the larger patches, Mylan offers a generic patch which is about 1/4 as large as duragesic patches, and does not contain a large bulky reservoir. It blends into the skin and is much easier to apply and maintain than the bulkier Duragesic and Watson patches. Hope that helps.
Note: This advice is not meant to take the place of the advice of your physician or pharmacist. Do not change dose, dosing schedule, or stop using the Fentanyl patch without your doctor's permission and a suitable opiod tapering program to avoid withdrawal symptoms. Always read the enclosed patient leaflet.

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does anyone know of a pain management doctor in the west palm beach or surrounding area? i just moved here and can't seem to find a doctor willing to prescribe my duragesic, i guess cause i'm using it for arthritis and not for cancer pain. i've been using the patch for five years and it really helps with my pain. it's very frustrating cause i only have three patches left. thank you.

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I have tried both and I prefer the generic. It's smaller, not as big skin reaction. I actually request the generic so I don't get as big of a skin rash or itching.

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I have used the overlays for my durgesic patches (not the generic though because they are smaller and you get too much medicine which is what I was told). Anyway, For this month I need to use the larger patches which don't stick good on me and I lost the phone number to call because it has been so long that I have used the big ones. Can anyone tell me where I can find the number or give it to me now...thanks!

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I ve been wearing patches for years do to many pain issues.today is 30 from my back operation that took dr.s 5 years to just give me a mri.They just kept handing me pills patches.I told 1 dr. i was havin troble with them stay on an she wrote me a script for the lolipops.yeah.but sadly to report mylan is no longer making them.I have used 3 kinds and have the best luck with any that don t have the gel inside them.most rx carry them at least here in PA any more I can help with just e-mail me.If i don t reply asap it's cause there a 97% the dr.missed something.yeah so more pain.I even have to take pain pills in the am an pm an every 4 to6 hr.s.If I want to be able to take care of my children.I have no family and have found out way too many times the friends I had cared about useing me and weren't there to help me when my meds didn t make it the 30 days.I guess I didn t have nething for them.Sad 36 with a 79 years bones.

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I have the same problem. Go to a good drugstore and get some paper tape. It must be PAPER only tape it to your body. Many women as well as men use their upper chests the tape breaths so it works awesome. I have done it for 13 years.

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First of all I want to start by saying this is not for someone that is going to abuse prescription drugs but for someone that needs help managing there pain when the Duragesic patches help but just isn't enough. I am lucky enough to have a doctor that really wants to help me manage my pain so I can get on with a normal life. My doctor started me out on the duragesic patches and oxycodone. It finally felt like I had a breakthrough on something that helped. But anyone that has been on the patches knows they only work for a little over a day in stead of the 72 hours that they suppose to work. The second day I always had to have something extra to help with the pain. My doctor found the perfect system for me that worked for me and never had to change my prescription in the last two and half years. My doctor now prescribes me 15 100mcg/h duragesic patches and 120 80mg oxycotton a month. This sounds like alot but if you take them the way you suppose to they are safe and after you are used to wearing the patches for a while. It sounds like a high mg for the oxycotton but after wearing the patches it takes alot to help. The doctor said he was using the oxycotton for a breakthrough pain medication to go with the patches. I used to be scared to take the oxycotton after all the stories I heard about them. But after I found out all the bad stories I heard was because of people abusing them and I tried them I found out for them to be safe if you take them the way they are suppose to be taken. The way my doctor has me taking them is I take 1 oxycotton 80mg every 6 hours and I wear a patch for 24 hours and I leave the patch off for 24 hours. The doctor explained this to me that I would have a pain releif 24 hours a day without building my tolerence level up. Leaving the patch off for 24 hours keeps my tolerence down. My doctor has had me on this type of system for the last 2 and 1/2 years and it has worked. Now I am able to live a normal life and able to work every day without being in so much pain. I hoped this has really helped someone that wants to manage there pain. I just want to say these prescriptions can be really dangerous if abused so please don't take them if you don't need them and I would really like to hear about it if it has helped someone besides myself. Thanks

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My specialist (orthopaedic) prescribed 50ugm durogesic patches every third day for a painful knee after multiple operations including contraction of MRSA infection. I found that my metabolism took the medication up very fast, therefor pain came back before the end of the third day. I decided on my own to halve the patch and use it every day-and-a-half leaving the earlier patch on. This way the medication goes into my system slower and does not wear off so suddenly. The only important thing to my mind is to carefully note when and where one has applied the patch in order not to remove the wrong one! Allthough they say you should not cut the patch - it works for me! No hills and valleys but an even distribution of the drug. Hope this can help someone with similar experience.

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10-4 to the one-day effectiveness of the patches. When I first started on the patch treatment, I found myself very uncomfortable again after 30 hrs, and "dope sick" - from opiate withdrawal by the time 72hrs rolled around. So then, when I'd put on a new patch, it would hit me so hard ll I could do is curl up on the couch and go to sleep. Obviously that's no way to live. Long story short, my Doc. now prescribes one patch every 24 hrs. Yup - I get 30 /month. Thank the lord we have good insurance - I pay a $7 co-pay for a script that would be $700. Also - the Duragesic brand arguably works best - but the Mylan non-reservoir patches are 1000% more practical, less irritating , more flexible, more comfortable... and since I'm changing them every day anyway - how well they stick and etc doesn't make much difference. Talk to your doc, get them to prescribe 1) THe mylan generic and 2) One per day. I hope this helps someone out there.

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I have a similar story. i started out changing my patches every 3 days...well I started feeling awful on that 3rd day. I honestly felt like I was having withdraws. I finally convinced my doc. to let me change them every 48hrs. I was happy, but then I started feeling the same way on the 2nd day that I had felt on the third day. Its awful. Every other day I feel so so bad. my doc. said he had never heard of that - he said that he had never even heard of someone needing to change them every 48hrs. I am trying to just work my life around it and do everything I have to do on the days that I change. Does anyone else have a similar experience and maybe some advice?

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I have been on 100mcg/hr duragesic @48hrs since sept. before was 125mcg/hr @72hrs. last summer. anyways i am just originaly was feeling like i'll w/ds around 60hrs when @72hrs and now i am feeling w/ds around 36-38hrs now @48hrs. Now i am at 125mcg/hr @48hrs. no problem making it to 2 days. your body becomes used to the patch and needs a increase. depending on how long you been at that dose.

These patches are not meant to be worn for 72hrs. even generics are 20% less than brand. if you look at the overall fentanyl content on the box. useually the pharmacy will cover that info on the front of the box so you will not notice. not even then you will need a breakthrough pain med like perc. or oxy. just a fyi...

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i have chronick pain and MS i have been a misirble person for 6 years first i was on loratab 10/325 then peroset 10/325 then oxycodone 15/mg 6 times a day and oxycontin 40 mg 2 a day and then my wonderfall dr change me to the patch and first time in 6 years i feel amazing!! i still have to take my oxycodone but i find out that if i take one oxycontin a day the pain is 98% gone but the dr did stop my oxycontin .... so does anyone knows why he would do that and is it safe to take an oxycontin with the patch and oxycodone????

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@ iwona, I would imagine that he expects you to get the pain relief from the patch without a lot of extra after the dosage is steady in your system. I have been on the patches for over 5 years, same dosage for the last 3 with narco or percoet for break through pain. He has to switch the pills back and forth to keep them effective in my system. With so many drug seeking people after narcotics Dr.'s have to be careful, they have to show that they are not just giving you everything in the pharmacy, just what you need to stay reasonably pain free. Good luck. I too love the patches, they have saved my life. Fellow MS patient.

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OMG IT IS MY 4 TH PATCH AND THERE IS BEARLY ANY PAIN EVEN THOU I DO HAVE TO TAKE THE OXYCODONE FOR THE EXTRA UMPH BUT OMY GOD WHY DID EVERYBODY GIVE ME THE RUN AROUND INSTEAD THIS PATCH!! I LOVE THE PATCH I THINK I NEVER BEFORE IN 6 YEARS WOKE UP WITHOUT ANY PAIN AND I HAVE BEEN ON THE PATCH 10 DAYS AND NO PAIN ....AND I GET IT I WORK FOR PAIN MANAGMENT DR AND I SEE WHAT PPL DO TO GET DRUGS AND WHY DR ARE SO HARD TO GET ANYTHING FROM BUT MY PAIN MANAGMENT GUY GETS TWO THUMBS UP!!!! THANK YOU DR.L!!!!

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My experience with drug meds are much different. My Dr. says that I don't get addicted and I think he is right. When I started patches 7 years ago went with the normal route. 25, 50 then 75 every 72 hrs. At first I wore then faithfully the way they were scribed. I find that I can now wear a patch for up to 120 hrs without having to take break through pain meds. The Dr. says that I build a tolerance to pain rather then to the meds. I still refill my scripts on time but it is really nice to know I have spares in case one falls off. I never change now until I start to feel a little nauseated, get a headache, or really I can just tell when most of the med is gone. To me this drug has been a life saver, not in bad pain and not going up on pain meds.SLHRE

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I am also using the Durogesic pain patch with real success after contracting MRSA sepsis during an operation fora vascular condition in my legs. The sepsis went into my knee and this caused severe pain and restricted knee extension. I have been medicated with these stickers foir almost 4 years now. here is my tip: Always ensure that the area you are going to apply the sticker is free of body hear and well soaped cleansed. Then Medicinal alcohol or Spiritus and apply liberally to this area. Now wipe it dry with a tissue or cottonwool and make sure this area is completely dry. Then apply the sticker whilst you try not to touch the sticky area when removing this of the film base. Now the real trick is to apply pressure on the whole sticker for more or less two solid minutes. If you have done this correctly, you can even swim in a pool or spa bath as well as a sauna. It took me a while to perfect but it works!

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Yeah, they are great at first but soon you will build up tolerance and have to up your dose till you feel like you are losing yourself. Trust me, there will be a time you want to come off the patch and when you do i promise you it will be the worst wd of your life. Also fent heightens your tolerance so high that when you are withdrawaling even 80 mg oxy won't put a dent in the symptoms. I am trying to come off them now by weening myself. It is so hard, i feel like i am doing it cold turkey even though i am weening. Unless you are planning on wearing it the rest of your life and your okay with that, i wouldnt suggest it.

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I was also told by my doctor that she had never heard of anyone needing to change their fentanyl patches as often as every 48 hours, like I needed to. I felt like I was some freak alone in the world with this problem. Then my husband needed to go on them, and his would only last 48 hours, too! A while later, my best friend went on them, and hers only lasted one day!! These were all the Mylan brand patches. Doctors do not know everything. Neither do the manufacturers. I asked my pharmacist and he told me most people have to use one patch a day. I do sincerely hope this helps you.

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I totally agree with the others who say Duragesic/Fentanyl changed their life. My gosh the first morning I woke up and was able to move - I thought I had died and was in heaven because I didn't have to roll off the bed in so much pain to get my water and norco! My problem is I have been on 75mc of duragesic for 8 years now. I never felt that I needed to increase the dose because my pain didn't go over a level 4 on the 1 to 10 scale.

For the past year now (almost a year) my pain is getting back to 7, 8's and an occasional 10 :( For some reason my pain dr won't increase my patches! I was on norco 2 to 3 times a day for breakthru ... but since the patches were losing their effectiveness, I was taking the norco regularly (Which I HATE to do) I don't like taking medicine period. I feel with the patches ... I don't know...its better because I'm not constantly swallowing pills and watching the clock so I can take my next dose. Anyway the doc says my meds are already so high (he just put me on 2 morphine sulftate 15M ir a day) and the patch 75mc and I change it every two days.

I have had chronic pain for 14 years now. I seem to have a very sensitive system and a lot of medications they put me on thru the years gave me problems (IE couldn't breath on nuycenta ... tramadol made me throw up...I was so dizzy on Cymbalta I almost literally passed out several times) oxycontin 2 doses of 10mg made me flush and this red blotchy thing pop up on my chest and also breathing problems.

I just want to up the duragesic ... why switch anything if it has worked for almost 8 years? I feel like if I complain too much then I am the dreaded druggie seeker. I just don't know what the heck to do here. I've had 2 different inj's. during this past year. 1 (I think it was a nerve block) actually helped for about 3 weeks. It was so weird to just not have ANY pain in my hip & back for those weeks but it seemed to just wear off :(

I haven't taken anything for depression thru the years because I wasn't depressed ... but I'm getting there now :( I feel like the worst thing is, if he would increase the patch maybe I'd have another 7 to 8 years of decent pain relief. I can't go places because I know I will hurt worse if I move around. I'm afraid to even go on vacation with my family ... I dont' want to ruin their time and no way could I make the long drive without knowing I will have some kind of relief from the pain. I swear I can just feel myself giving in. And I dont' want to do that...I love my kids and grandkids..I love life ... but who can wake up everyday for 14 to 15 years straight in pain? It stinks :(

Sometimes I feel like why in the heck are they worried about dependance ... I'd rather have 10 good years of life than 20 years of laying around on the couch in pain. I WISH I didn't have to choose! LOL You know what I mean if you have chronic pain ... but when I lay around for 80% of the day - or when I get up to walk 20 steps and I have sharp pains running up my back... these things run thru my mind.

What should I do? I'm just looking for other peoples opinions. I dont' want to change dr's - I've been at this clinic for 8 years and with this dr for 4 to 5 years. I LOVE the staff, I know them - I think they know me ... I have heard that the wise thing to do would be to increase the patch ...because long acting pain relief is better than the short term pain meds. I agree, I prefer the patch over any pill ... it doesn't make me sick to my stomach, I have heard that it doesn't do damage to the organs like pills ... thanks for listening

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After a number of years on Oxycontin with little pain relief and much emotional pain from the reaction of others, medical people as well as lay people I have been on the patch for three years now, from 25 to 75. The pain is well under control with very few S&S if a patch is off for awhile(how long before I would feel withdrawal?) but the itching is pretty severe at times and the patch does come off, esp if I try to shower.It is well accepted by other Drs though Oxycontin always got a negative feedback. I take Hyrocodone esp in AM with a Mobid and make it through the day. TY, ty, ty...

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One month I was given a patch that was 4âŒ4, flesh colored I instead of small and somewhat clear. I have 100mcg every 48 hours. By day 20 I had burned skin with blisters. This was also using a steroid inhaler blowing in my skin. I ran shirt because of this and had to go back to my PT doctor. He said he had not seen a burn so severe. I cannot wear that particular brand. Has anyone else been burned by these patches?

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I also use the patch but have trouble getting the patch to stick. How do you get these overlays you are talking about

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Yes,you can cover duragesic SAFELY with bioclusive-a dressing that was available thru duragesic for free-but is no longer made-and you can also use tagaderm to cover the patches.I had trouble with sticking until my dr. told me to apply them to the front upper part of my hips.The only problem is that I've worn them there on both legs for quite some time,and patches lost effectiveness. TRY TAGADERM-I have some bioclusives left,and am using them til I run out...then tagaderms

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