Vicodin

Vicodin is an prescription medication used to treat moderate to severe pain.

It is a single product containing 2 medications: hydrocodone and acetaminophen. The hydrocodone part of Vicodin belongs to a class of drugs called opiates. These help to reduce pain by inhibiting pain signals sent to your brain.

The acetaminophen part of Vicodin helps to reduce pain and fever by inhibiting the production of certain chemicals in the brain and inhibiting pain signals sent to your brain.

Vicodin is available as a tablet, a solution, and an elixir and is typically given every 4 to 6 hours as needed for pain with or without food.

Common side effects include constipation, and nausea. Vicodin can also cause dizziness and drowsiness. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery until you know how Vicodin affects you.

Vicodin is a prescription medication used to treat moderate to severe pain. This medication may be prescribed for other uses. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. 

Take this medication exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully.

The dose your doctor recommends may be based on the following:

•  the condition being treated
•  other medical conditions you have
•  other medications you are taking
•  how you respond to this medication
•  your weight
•  your height
•  your age

Vicodin doses are also determined by how much pain medication you have recently been taking. Doses are typically started at hydrocodone 5 mg / acetaminophen 325 mg taken every 4 to 6 hours as needed. The maximum dose of acetaminophen recommended by the FDA is 4000 mg/day.

Acetaminophen has been associated with cases of acute liver failure, at times resulting in liver transplant and death. Most of the cases of liver injury are associated with the use of acetaminophen at doses that exceed 4000 mg per day, and often involve more than one acetaminophen-containing product

Serious side effects have been reported with Vicodin including the following:

• A decline in liver function. Tell your healthcare provider about any signs or symptoms of liver damage, which include the following:
  • loss of appetite or start losing weight (anorexia)
  • nausea or vomiting
  • feel tired
  • stomach pain or tenderness
  • dark urine or light colored stools
  • yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes
  • fever or rash
• Low platelet count (thrombocytopenia). Tell your doctor right away if you have any unusual bleeding, such as nosebleeds, or bruising under your skin.
• Respiratory depression. Seek emergency medical care if you experience any difficulty breathing.
• Severe skin reactions. Severe skin reactions may happen after treatment with Vicodin, especially if you have lymphoma in or under your skin. If your skin reactions are severe, they may lead to serious illness or death. Tell your doctor right away if you have of any of the following skin reactions:
  • rash
  • peeling and loss of skin
  • sores
  • blisters

Vicodin can cause drowsiness. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery until you know how Vicodin affects you.

Do not take Vicodin if you:

• Have a hypersensitivity to acetaminophen, hydrocodone, or to any other component of the product.
• Have a hypersensitivity to other opioids 

Serious side effects have been reported with Vicodin. See the "Vicodin Precautions" page.

Common side effects of Vicodin include:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Sedation
• Lightheadedness
• Dizziness

This is not a complete list of Vicodin side effects. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Especially tell your doctor if you take:

• Medications that use the enzyme CYP3A4 such as budesonide (Entocort), astemizole (Hismanal), cisapride (Propulsid), cyclosporine (Neoral, Gengraf, Sandimmune), darifenacin (Enablex), dihydroergotamine (Migranal), fentanyl (Abstral, Fentora, Onsolis, Actiq), pimozide (Orap), quinidine (Cardioquin, Duraquin, Quinact), sirolimus (Rapamune), tacrolimus (Prograf), terfenadine (Seldane), fluticasone (Flovent HFA, Flonase), eletriptan (Relpax), lovastatin (Mevacor), quetiapine (Seroquel), sildenafil (Viagra, Revatio), and simvastatin (Zocor)
• Warfarin
• Isoniazid
• Naltrexone
• Other opiate or analgesic medications

Do not drink alcohol while taking this medication. This is not a complete list of Vicodin drug interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. The FDA categorizes medications based on safety for use during pregnancy. Five categories - A, B, C, D, and X, are used to classify the possible risks to an unborn baby when a medication is taken during pregnancy.

Vicodin falls into category C. In animal studies, pregnant animals were given this medication and had some babies born with problems. No well-controlled studies have been done in humans. Therefore, this medication may be used if the potential benefits to the mother outweigh the potential risks to the unborn child.

Tell your doctor if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. Lactation studies with Vicodin therapy have not been done in humans. Acetaminophen is excreted in human milk in small amounts; however, it is unknown if hydrocodone is excreted in human milk. Because many drugs are excreted in human milk and because of the potential for serious adverse effects in nursing infants, a decision should be made to discontinue nursing or discontinue Vicodin.