Painkiller drugs are generally prescribed by doctors to treat illnesses such as migraines, arthritis, back injuries, to aid in recovery from surgery etc. As with any type of drugs, painkillers carry various risks and can be dangerous if abused or misused. But many people perceive that painkiller drug abuse is 'safer' than other illicit drugs.
One of the major risks of using painkillers is that they are highly addictive. Some users pleasure the sedative effects and numbing of pain by painkillers. Tolerance quickly develops using painkillers, making the user take higher doses to maintain the same intensity of the drugs. Painkiller withdrawal is also very unpleasant, making the user suffer from bone pain, intense anxiety, diarrhea, tremors, vomiting, sweating etc.
Painkillers, apart from causing a feeling of sedation, can also cause many cardiovascular complications. Many researches have already shown that painkillers can slow down the heartbeat rate, and even cause possible heart attack. Another possible side effect of abusing painkillers on heart is thrombosis or blood clot.
High blood pressure
Over The Counter doesn't mean that they are safe, they can raise the risk of high blood pressure. Many painkillers can push your blood pressure to higher levels. Painkiller drug abuse is even more dangerous for people suffering from blood pressure. Since high blood pressure has no physical symptoms, you may be getting yourself into risk without even realizing it.
Higher doses of painkiller drugs can increase the risk of bleeding or torn stomach lining by several times. Painkiller drug abuse can be related to many of the hospitalizations and deaths due to gastrointestinal bleeding. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently stated that over-the-counter painkillers are required to carry labels warning consumers of the potential risks of liver damage and internal bleeding associated with painkillers.
Painkiller drug abuse is said to double the hearing problems when compared to non abusers. According to a study conducted by researchers from Harvard University, men who regularly abuse painkillers are two times more likely to suffer hearing problems than non-abusers. They have also found that younger men are at higher risk. Although they did not study women, they believe that painkiller abuse will have an effect on their hearing also.
Like any other illicit drug, painkiller drug abuse can be very harmful to pregnant women by increasing the risk of miscarriage, premature labor and low weight babies. This abuse is said to cause respiratory dysfunction, and substantially increase the risk of pre- and postnatal complications. A study by researchers in California found that painkiller drug abuse increased the risk of miscarriage by 80% in pregnant women.