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posted by martyb on Wednesday May 04 2016, @04:27PM   Printer-friendly
from the Antidiarrheal-overdose?-Oh,-crap! dept.

NPR is reporting on the latest drug scare, involving an over-the-counter antidiarrheal drug that is being used for its opioid-like effects by addicts:

Some people addicted to oxycodone and other opioids are now turning to widely available diarrhea medications to manage their withdrawal symptoms or get high. The results can be dangerous to the heart — and sometimes fatal — warn toxicologists in a study [open, DOI: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2016.03.047] recently published online in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.

The researchers describe two case studies where people who were addicted to opioids tried to ease their withdrawal symptoms by taking many times the recommended dose of loperamide, a drug commonly used treat diarrhea. Both patients died.

"Because of its low cost, ease of accessibility and legal status, it's a drug that is very, very ripe for abuse," says lead author William Eggleston, a doctor of pharmacy and fellow in clinical toxicology at the Upstate New York Poison Center, which is affiliated with SUNY Upstate Medical University.

Related:

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  • (Score: 2) by Rosco P. Coltrane on Wednesday May 04 2016, @05:16PM

    by Rosco P. Coltrane (4757) on Wednesday May 04 2016, @05:16PM (#341554)

    Looks like it kills you by inducing arrhythmia for anyone who had to go search it out.

    I pop Immodium every once in a while - like most everybody. But each time I do, my blood pressure goes up and it lasts for hours. I can feel it easily because I normally have very low blood pressure, and I can tell you, the feeling is rather unpleasant when Immodium makes it go up.

    Bear in mind, that's just one pill. I can't imagine doing two, let alone many pills. I'm not surprised at all by the side effects you report.

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  • (Score: 2) by devlux on Wednesday May 04 2016, @06:14PM

    by devlux (6151) on Wednesday May 04 2016, @06:14PM (#341589)

    You should be careful with that. Don't take it with caffeine and make sure to drink plenty of water.
    Keep in mind the digestive system effectively has it's own CNS and make you think things are going on like blood pressure even when they're not.
    You should check your blood pressure if possible when that occurs, but seeing a Dr about it might not be a bad idea.

    Personal recommendation, pepto seems to work faster and last longer for me. Unless you have a bleeding condition or are otherwise taking salicylates like aspirin or blood thiners such as warfarin

    http://www.webmd.com/drugs/2/drug-3949/warfarin-oral/details/list-interaction-details/dmid-1/dmtitle-anticoagulants-salicylates/intrtype-drug [webmd.com]

    there is no reason not to try the pink stuff first.