Hyderabad: The US’ Centres for Disease Control has raised an alarm over the heavy use of pain killers by patients, saying it could result in an epidemic.
Drugs that are prescribed to relieve pain are becoming a major addiction. Sedatives, anti-anxiety medicines and stimulants are being highly abused and doctors have been asked to talk to patients about the prescription of pain killers and how it must be used only during the prescribed time.
Dr Chandrasekhar Rao, senior general physician, said that the maximum time a damaged tissue takes to heal is three months in chronic conditions. For other conditions or mild pain, there is no need for a high-dosage of painkillers.
“What’s happening now is high doses are being prescribed and that is leading to addiction among the young,” he said. For mild pain, lower dosages of pain killers must be prescribed to prevent addiction, he said.
Dr Akun Sabharwal, director of the Drugs Control Administration (DCA), said, “The biggest challenge for the DCA is to control rampant sales of over-the-counter opioid analgesics. This is a huge menace.”
