Medication (Pain relieving medicines)
The World Health Organisation reccomends that pain is treated first with pain relievers. Because each person has a unique response, doctors may try a variety of drug and dose combinations to see what works best.
Common pain relief pills include aspirin and ibuprofen (both drugs for reducing inflammation) as well as paracetamol. These medicines can be effective but can also have side effects.
Common pain relieving medicines include:
- Paracetamol. Paracetamol is a simple pain killer. At the recommended dose, paracetamol can be taken regularly for long periods to treat headaches and many other pains. Overdosing can cause serious side effects such as liver and kidney damage. So, if your pain is severe, you should not increase the dose
- Anti-inflammatories. The most common are ibuprofen and aspirin. They work by reducing inflammation. Ibuprofen should not generally be used for long periods as there is a risk of side effects such as stomach upset, including bleeding, and kidney and heart problems. The recommended amount should not be exceeded as this increases the risk of side effects. Aspirin has the same sort of side effects as other anti-inflammatories
- Codeine. Codeine is from the opioid family of drugs. It is usually given as tablets or as an in injection. Codeine works better when taken with paracetamol. Low strength codeine with paracetamol can be bought from a pharmacy. Higher strength codeine has to be prescribed by a doctor. Other medium-strength prescription painkillers include tramadol and di-hydrocodeine. All these painkillers require careful use as they can cause drug dependency. Drowsiness, nausea and constipation are the most common side effects of codeine
- Amitriptyline and gabapentin. Amitriptyline is used to treat depression and gabapentin is used to prevent seizures. Taken as tablets, these drugs can also be used to treat pain from nerves. You don’t have to have depression or suffer from seizures for them to relieve pain. They have to be prescribed by a doctor. Side effects include drowsiness and dizziness
- Morphine. Morphine and morphine-like drugs (such as oxycodone, fentanyl and buprenorphine) also belong to the opioid family. They are the strongest painkillers available, used only for severe pain. They are usually given as tablets, a skin patch (analgesic patch), as suppositories, or as an injection. They are only given after seeing your doctor or a pain management specialist. While taking these painkillers, the amount and your response will be closely checked by your doctor. Morphine has some unpleasant side effects. Around one third of patients starting morphine may feel sick and may vomit. Constipation occurs in almost all patients and itching may mean that you need to change to a different opioid. Drug dependency is a serious risk with morphine and morphine-like drugs
Last updated: 22 Sep 2010
Common oral pain relief
(with aspirin, ibuprofen or paracetamol) can be effective but can also have side effects
