Hepatitis and pain meds

[RAY MAN]

My father-in-law has AIDS and Hepatitis and he has recently aquired a case of shingles.  His Dr. has him taking Vidodin and Lortab for pain (8-10 per day.  As a nurse, I know this is very bad for his liver, but I have not been able to convince him that his Dr. is wrong.  Also, I suggested to tell his Dr. that maybe Neurotin would be a better choice, but his Dr. just gave him another scrip of Lortab.  What should I tell him - other than to change doctors.

[Rocky43]

Thank you for taking the time to answer my question about headace medication for my wife.  I'll take a look and check them out myself, and then talk to her doctor to see what dosage is alright for her to take.  Take care and God Bless

Rocky43 -

[cuteus]

A while back I searched the PDR in my office for analgesics that were mostly processed through the kidneys and found oxycontin to be one.
many drs don't want to prescribe narcotics, but they are the only true analgesics, since they reach the central nervous system more effectively. I was using vicoprofen, since tylenol does nothing for me.

[Rocky43]

Hi To All,

My wife has hepatitis 'C' and gets headaches.  Is there an approved and effective pain medication that she can take that will not damge the liver?  Thanks - Rocky43

[TnHepGuy_]

I'm sorry to hear of your wife's ongoing problems. I hope she can find some relief soon.

All medications are processed through the liver. Some are easier on it than others. Mostly it is a matter of how much the medicine becomes concentrated while in there and how long the liver has exposure to it. If your wife is having a chronic and frequent need for pain relief medications, she might be best served by a prescription via her doctor. If she needs it infrequently and in normal dosage amounts, Ibuprofen is considered relatively safe when used as directed, but definitely not on an everyday basis. In either case, it would be best for her to consult with her doctor and/or pharmacist regarding any type medications, in relation to her condition of having Hep C.


TnHepGuy

[susan400]

I can barely function right now due to severe pain.  My doctor has diagnosed me with lumbar radiculopathy, but he's not sure about the diagnosis and thinks it may be something else involved.  Therefore, I've been scheduled to get an MRI of my brain and spine on wed. and have a neurologist appt. on Feb. 1st.  I've been in such intense pain and the only thing that has worked is Lortab.  I have no desire to stop the Lortab.  If it causes further liver damage then, that's the risk I'll have to take.  My liver hasn't responded to any of my Hep C treatments anyway, so the way I feel, why not get some relief from my pain.  I also have a script for a muscle relaxer and Ultram, so I try to stagger the dosages like, one time I'll take Lortab, then, the next a muscle relaxer, then the next Ultram, so that I'm not taking Lortab every time.

Susan

[scruffy]

It's my understanding that you do not get immunity to hcv by fighting it off previously. I think you can still be infected and I'm sure others will respond to this question if you check back or even post it again later. It's important to find out about.

[moonbaby]

Hydrocodone 10/APAP 625 is the generic name for Loracet. Vicodin, Lortab, and Norco all contain Hydrocondone ( a synthetic form of Codeine) and APAP (an abbreviation for acetaminophen, which is generic name for Tylenol) in varying amounts. Sorry if I am confusing. Anyway, the synthetic Codeine in all of these meds, to my understanding does not have an adverse effect on your liver, but the APAP (or Tylenol) does. That is why Doc prescribed Norco for me, because it has a higher dose of Hydrocodone, which is a narcotic analgesic, and less Tylenol, which in large doses can be toxic to liver. Hope this helps.
I really don't think there is any proven method of decreasing your viral load except tx. I was infected probably 15 years and had a low viral load (301,000). During that time I drank moderately, smoked heavily, and lived on a diet of fast food.
Since, I have quit smoking/drinking, and modified my diet.
Physicians differ on the amount of time between biopsy and ultrasound. Mine says ultrasound yearly and biopsy every 3 years. Good luck!

Moonbaby

[3wheelin]

Correction - I'm on hydrocodone (10-650mg), not lorecet.  I didn't realize that hydrocodone wasn't as bad on your liver as the vicodin.  Thanks for the reponses also.  Another clarification - i'm not dating - we live together.  I guess I'm a little confused though.  Even though my immune system fought the HCV off on its own, I guess I'm wondering if I can still catch it - or pass it on.  How can a person increase or decrease their viral load?  The only thing we inject in our bodies now is Vitamin B.  From what I remember, the ultrasound & biopsy came out ok, but how often does a person have to recheck?

[moonbaby]

Hello- I started taking Norco (Hydrocodone 10mg/ APAP 325) at the start of my tx and am continuing to take it 6 months post tx. Usually take 1 1/2 to 2 pills daily. I have a lot of joint, muscle, and right sided pain. Also, I have a lot of GI problems secondary to the tx which are quite painful. I am a nurse, also (13 years). It is my understanding that the hydrocodone is not harmful to the liver, just the APAP. Doc has said I can have up to 2000mg APAP daily. I don't take near that amount. For years I took 800mg Ibuprofen three times a day,but doc has limited me to 400mg daily after dx. Thing is, your father-in-law may choose to risk harm to his liver to be rid of some of the pain. Shingles alone are painful as hell. He might ask the doc for a rx of hydrocodone with less APAP, but as you know, chronic pain is sometimes far more debilitating and lessens quality of life more than the underlying illness. Best of luck.

Moonbaby

[bunkywoo]

I don't think you should be giving advice about not starting tx due to a low viral load. There has never been any correlation between viral load and liver damage. The only way to truly assess liver damage is through a biopsy. I also don't think a recommendation by a "lady" who brings around teas and vitamins is good advice. The only proven method that I know of to eradicate HCV is through tx or by being lucky enough to have your immune system get rid of it on its own. Diet changes and not drinking/drugging are definitely pluses, but won't by themselves eradicate the virus. Also, I do believe there is a slight chance of being infected through sex (probably more so by a man giving it to a woman than the other way around)due to the "plumbing" differences and the fact that semen does contain blood.

I wish you good luck in your battle.

Laurie

[njrsl]

Hi welcome here. No one is a doctor either. First, don

[Xenigma]

Why is he taking Vicodin and Lortab?
They are both the same drug.  If he is taking that many milligrams why doesn't the Doc switch him to the Oxycontin so he wont have to take so much tylenol?
Just a thought
enigma

[3wheelin]

Hello all, I am new here but have been trying to read up & I'm glad I found this site.  I had a question about the pain meds also.  I was diagnosed w/HCV about 3 yrs ago, but on the further qualitive/quantitive testing, my dr said that I didn't have to undergo treatment - something about how I was in the 8% of the population of people that have HCV that was able to fight it off on my own???  I got my sig. other to get tested about a month ago while he was in the hospital for something else & his came back positive & he will have to undergo treatment next spring - the dr wants to wait because of some new treatment that might be out then.  Back to the pain med question.  I have sometimes severe chronic back pain since April 2004(don't know how or why yet) but have been taking loracet for months.  I know this is bad for an 'already bad' liver, but does anyone know how long I can safely be on these?  Also, if I supposedly was able to fight off virus on my own, am I still at risk of getting it through further exposure from my sig. other?  And does a person have to keep on getting tested for the rest of your life?  I just started a new job a couple of months ago & don't have health ins. yet, but am thinking seriously about omitting the HCV results because I don't know if they consider that a pre-existing condition.  I  know my x-husbands meds were about $3,000/month (his ins. paid for most, of course) and thank God his cleared up in 6 months.