Fentanyl Patches Killing People! (Page 2)

I would like to know WHY the FDA has not taken the Fentanyl Patch off the market? This drug is being handed out like candy. Anyone who is not terminal or under Hospice care or in a hospital invironment should not be using this drug. Why would a person be prescribed a medication that is 80 times stronger than morphine for a backache. I do not believe patients know how powerful this medication is. The warning should be labled in RED. When are you FDA going to realize This medication is killing while relieving pain! I know because it killed my son.

REPLY

REPORT

I'm sorry you lost your soon. But, fentanyl is the only reason my parents still have a daughter and my soon still has a mother. You do not have to be a cancer patient or terminal in order to have pain so bad you will take your own life.
Please don't be selfish because of your loss. If you campaign against this medicine and it gets pulled, you will be causing countless deaths from people who cannot live with the pain anymore.
Fentanyl 50mcg has given me back to my family!
If you must campaign for something, then please take action with medicine education! Don't take something away that is helping a great many people.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 7

OKAY, I'm as about fed up with this discussion as I can get. Someone died from improper use of the drug. That's tragic, but that does not mean that it should be prohibited. Also, it is NOT handed out like candy, it's kind of tough to get a prescription for the drug.

NOW...I HAD A FRIEND OF MINE DIE FROM TRYING TO SWALLOW TOO BIG A PIECE OF STEAK. SHOULD STEAK BE TAKEN OFF THE MARKET? PEOPLE HAVE DIED FROM EATING FOOD TO WHICH THEY WERE ALLERGIC. SHOULD WE MAKE FOOD ILLEGAL? A FELLOW HAM RADIO OPERATOR DIED WHEN HE PUT HIS HANDS WHERE THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN...HE WAS ELECTROCUTED, SHALL WE PROHIBIT THE USE OF ELECTRICITY?

Do you see now that anything can kill...such is life.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 8

I understand about working on nerve pain. My wife has been on the patch for 15 yrs
for Fibro, With Ohio setting up safe guards against this medicine. Doctors no longer
want to write the script. Pain management clinics say deal with it. Because the go home at night pain free. She has sevre bulging disk, starts shots tomorrow. No help from the Fentanyl patch

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I too am sorry for your loss, however taking this medication off the market is not the answer. First of all I would have to assume there was abuse going, secondly he would have had to over exaggerate his pain level to the PM Doc, and third the Pain management doc and your son are responsible. I have Degenerative Disc Disease, have had three back surgeries, and my only option left is a permanent spinal cage to support my spine with rods and pins that will limit my mobility greatly. I am only 43 y.o. I do not feel high from my pain meds, am too on the Fetalnyl Patch, plus morphine IR for breakthrough pain. I have prayed for just one day to wake up and hop out of bed w/o pain. I wish to not to have to take the highest dose of muscle relaxants just so my legs and feet don't trip me up. A simple shower can leave me exhausted. If I push myself I am down for 2 or 3 days after. People Abusing narcotics has made it so difficult for us who truly need these medications to get what we need. When Pain Management at Temple Hospital told myself and my husband that they had nothing to offer me in the way of long term pain management ( i.e. nerve blocks etc.) because my condition is so severe I became hysterical. Do you think anyone wants to have to take pills that allow me to just urinate at free will because it is a side effect, or to become so impacted with fecal matter that she has to ask her husband to help her by putting gloves on to help her manually remove a BM? I could be on a different Cocktail that were not so extreme had abusers not ruined it for those of us in need. Percocet is nearly unreachable by PM, as is Vicodin ( unless for breakthrough). I do not want to be high but if being able to function as best as I can I need these meds. My belief is that once the body accepts this and realizes its being introduced to relieve that pain the HIGH dissipates. However if you do not truly need these medications your body will continue to ask for more and mmore and more to keep that Euphoric feeling. It is just like a H user starting their habit with a bag a day until they are chasing that first high with bundles of dope. So someone is lying here...

REPLY

Was this helpful? 4

BevMar, have you tried Lyrica? I had terrible nerve pain in my left leg and tried Neurontin and the Lyrica is so much better at relieving nerve pain and just overall pain.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Because it works for people like me
When used as directed
Tylenol kills more people every year and its still on the market
Sorry for your loss

REPLY

Was this helpful? 4

Li, sorry to hear this . i had a cage in 2000 and it was fine for 5 years and i developed scarring around the surgery site.. NOT GOOD.. more pain now than ever and need to live the rest of my days on these darn man made drugs or live in unbearable pain.. some people do not develop scar tissue. i developed major scaring around the surgery site pressing on nerves and there is nothing they can do other then go in and scrap out the scarring.. which additional surgery may end up developing more scar tissue rinse repeat.. need i say more.. leave well enough alone.. thanks to a head on collision in 1995.. no more help here.. just deal with it..

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I am so sorry about your son. I lost my daughter not long ago. No parent should have to bury their child. I can see that you care very much for people and you don't want what happened to your son to happen to anyone else. I am on Fentanyl patches and 10-325 Percocet for break through pain and am very thankful for both. Sweetie It would be great that terrible pain only come at the end of our lives but this is not the case. I have so much pain that I have thought of suicide before my doctor was wise and put me on the patch. I know talking suicide is a heavy thought but I bet that many people on this forum have thought the same thought. At the end of my daughters life I put Fentanyl patches on her among other medications. She fought to live to her last breath. So sorry about your son, God bless you.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 4

I have been on the Fentanyl patch for several years. I have been prescribed changes every two days and three days. It is an option to the prescriber.
I have Blue Cross/Blue shield and they will authorize 15 patches per month with a request from your pain doctor and some history.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 2

As I just came off these god aweful patches which I've used for three years, only five days ago. After weaning down from 150 mg every 48's to every three days, then down to 50's and 25's, until done with this unbearable process of getting off them completely. It has been the worst physical experince I ever endured.
I also question why this drug is so freely given. With no resources for detox, and many Dr's not understanding the process of weaning down. This has been a nightmare, and I'm still extremely uncomfortable after five days. My advice to anyone offered this pain med to talk openly with your Dr about using something less harsh to come off of.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Please be very careful with Fentanyl patches, I also lost a son son who was abusing these patches that are 80 times stronger than morphene (sp?) They would dry them out and insufflate it. He passed out and never woke up. Please please be very careful, don't put anyone through this hell.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I was placed on fentanyl patches my being told it was a pain patch.I had no clue how potent it was.I have been on the same 50mcg for 4 years now.I take no other pain med I just wish someone had warned me.I want off them soon.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I have a wonderful trusting pain management dr in Oklahoma City. I've been in pm for 27 yrs and I'm on 12 30 mg oxycodone a day due to 4 back surgeries in lil over a year and 8 total. Having another one in 2 weeks for bad neck fracture. My dr understands I live my life in bed and that I'm in such excruciating pain that I can hardly function. I also have fibromyalgia and severe nerve damage from lL 5 nerve root with a severe pain that goes from my low back,butt , leg and foot to toes I couldn't function without this and all the Kadian Morphine as well as muscle relaxer and lyrica I take.. Even with meds my pain level is still a 9 t0 every min of my life. There are times I think death would be better than living with all this pain but I have a son who needs me. I'm 47 and feel 87. My future scares me if already this bad now what will the future hold. I hope you have found a good pm dr but if not I have a great one in OKC.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 2

tell your pain doctor you want off of them now. You can do it slowly. I have come from 75 with 6 percocets 10/325 to zero fentanyl. I had to go back on the Fentanyl because nothing else helped me 24hrs a day. I came back on at 25 and 3 percocets /day and it is working ok with stimulator I had implanted in 2010.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

If used correctly fentanyl did not kill your son.You need to find the real reason.I have back and hip pain and without it I am in bed fighting pain to no relief.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I don't think it was right that no one explained the details to you verbally. However in each box of patches there is a package of paper explaining this in lay mans terms and some only a chemist would understand. If it works this well for you you should be ecstatic!
Many people get no relief from any thing. If you want to get off of the patch do it with your doctors supervision and it's not that difficult. Good luck!

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

I am so sorry for your loss. When acquired properly and used as prescribed Fentanyl patches can provide relief for chronic pain better than most alternatives. These people need this product. Also remember when kids or anyone else wants to feel high (which Fentanyl doesn't) in my experience with it, they can use household cleaning products and parents oral pain relievers and even WHIPPED cream along with glues of all types. People have been killed by all of these and by many more.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 1

Hi sorry to hear that, but can you tell me how it is killing people, I have had spinal fusion between L5 & S1 and I am on 150mg every three days and oxynorm for the breakthrough pain.
Many thanks Dean

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

OK. I understand this now. The Dr. is 100 % at fault. It is not the Fentanyl. It scares me when I hear that this medication should be taken. I have severe RSD and knew I would not be able to take the pain much longer. I did not want to leave my children and my husband. Knowing I was taking away my physical and mental pain and forcing them to feel emotional pain was the only thing that kept me hanging on. My husband had also started understanding, its also hard to c someone you love screaming in agony day after day. This Fentanyl. literally saved my life. It saved my family. Although its getting hard again (pain level) I am trying to take oral fentanyl. for break through pain instead of dilaudid. This med. is not ever supposed to be used on anyone that hasn't been on constant forms of narcotics. Bold letters right on the box. and then to add other med. on top of that...for a child with a back ache. What the hell? Something is really wrong with that Dr. The pharmacist also should have picked up on this. This level of incompetence is absolutely criminal. I hope he /she is not allowed to go near young patients ever again. He shouldn't be allowed to go anywhere near children ever. He should be in prison!

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

Hi Verwon, maybe you can help me. Where do you live? Most of us (rsd patients) have been struggling to find a doctor that will prescribe Actiq with our patches. I know from trying it in the ER it works. Its so frustrating knowing there is something that can help me and my family life a better life but I cant it. I live in NY.

REPLY

Was this helpful? 0

I have been on fentanyl / Duragesic since 2005 when i was not longer able to take oral opioids as my stomach lining was ...

32 REPLIES

Hi I'm on 100 mcg I do know when they run but they don't seem to do much. What is better then this for osteo pai...

15 REPLIES

my husband started getting his stuff from drs then went to 2 or 3 drs and paid outta picket then they foumd out and cut ...

10 REPLIES

Hi All ~ Thanks for reading and possibly helping me out ! First a quick summery, 2 failed back surgery's, L3, L4, &a...

7 REPLIES

Hi I'm on 100 I do know when they run but they don't desalt seem to do much what is better then this for osteo p...

7 REPLIES

My father has recently started on these patches after a second full knee replacement and being on other pain killers for...

5 REPLIES

Hi I'm on 100 I do know when they run but they don't desalt seem to do much what is better then this for osteo p...

4 REPLIES

My husband ran out of his 50 mcg Fentanyl Patches on Monday. Today is Friday 12/11/09 and he is experiencing withdrawals...

3 REPLIES

Can someone please tell me where I can find a doctor who is not afraid to prescribe fentanyl patches and 10/325 hydrocod...

2 REPLIES

First let me start off by saying, I have definitely reduced my dosage from 3 100mcg to 2 100mcg patches. I am currently ...

1 REPLY