Sunday, May 20, 2007

Fentanyl patch observations

I had such high hopes for the fentanyl patch, but sadly, it hasn’t yet worked any miracles.  I do feel some decrease in pain, but it’s not nearly what I felt from 20 mg of oxycontin.  I don’t even think it works as well as 10 mg of oxycontin.  The patch is supposed to last for 72 hours, but it’s practically useless after 48 hours, and definitely dead after 60 hours.  After about ten days on the 25 mcg patch I tried two patches, to test the effects of 50 mcg, and it was much more effective for pain relief, but it really exacerbated symptoms of nausea, fatigue, and urinary retention.  I’d reach a point with oxycontin where I really had no side-effects to speak of, so it’s difficult to deal with a resurgence of them.  The most prominent side-effect I’ve noticed is reflux (GERD), and since I started the patches, I’ve been taking Zantac daily.  The experience has really made me appreciate how well my body tolerates oxycontin/oxycodone.

Sadly, I think I’ll just end up going back on oxycontin when my fentanyl supply is up.  I can’t stay on 25 mcg because I’m not getting enough pain relief, and if I move up to 50 mcg, it will literally double the cost, to about $250 per month.  I have no affordable break-through pain options with fentanyl, either.  Switching back to oxycontin, but increasing my dosage, will still cost about $210 per month, but I’ll be able to be more flexible about the dosage (i.e., I can take it either two or three times a day, depending on how I feel), and I’ll have inexpensive oxycodone available for break-through pain.  I also won’t have to deal with nausea, urinary retention, or GERD, which will save money on supplemental meds.

I’d hoped fentanyl would help give me my life a sense of normalcy, and that I’d perhaps be able to enjoy a day or two of continuous pain relief, without having the ups and downs of taking shorter-acting pills.  It really doesn’t do that.  Even if I didn’t have the nausea, GERD, etc., the patches still only last about 48 hours, so I’m faced with having an entire day of pain while I wait to change patches, or my costs increase substantially as I go through 15 patches per month instead of 10.  I just haven’t been at all happy with the results I’ve had, and I’ve noticed that I’ve been quite unproductive in this month of experiments, too.  I think it’s time to go back to what I know works, even if it’s not a perfect solution either.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 05/20 at 12:16 AM
Tired Girls • (1) Comments • Permalink
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