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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Taking Hydrocodone After Hip Replacements. Restless Without Medication. Addicted?

My husband has been taking Hydrocodone for about two years due to need for hip replacements. His last replacement was in Sept 2012. He is still needing this drug for pain. Tests have ruled out possible reasons for the pain. Without the med he is very restless and is in pain. He can t sleep for long and is moving around repeatedly and can t get comfortable. He is taking Aleve every few hours but it doesn t help. My question is could he be addicted? The doctor has tried before to cut his dosage to wean him but he always has this pain and gets the meds again. How can I determine if he has a problem? Thanks.
Wed, 3 Apr 2013
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
A patient may develop dependance on drug like hydrocodone. This is managed by a step wise reduction in dosage and finally stopping or replacing with other substitutes. However, this is possible only if the patient s pain has reduced and he is able to manage without it which is not the case with you. Unfortunately, there is no way to assess if the patient is really in pain as we have to depend on what the patient says unless there is a strong reason to suspect otherwise. Addiction does not cause pain in the hip and movements and this suggests the pain is due to the joint than addiction.

If your husband agrees, you can ask the doctor to substitute other pain killers for hydrocodone after weaning and see if he is alright with it.
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Taking Hydrocodone After Hip Replacements. Restless Without Medication. Addicted?

A patient may develop dependance on drug like hydrocodone. This is managed by a step wise reduction in dosage and finally stopping or replacing with other substitutes. However, this is possible only if the patient s pain has reduced and he is able to manage without it which is not the case with you. Unfortunately, there is no way to assess if the patient is really in pain as we have to depend on what the patient says unless there is a strong reason to suspect otherwise. Addiction does not cause pain in the hip and movements and this suggests the pain is due to the joint than addiction. If your husband agrees, you can ask the doctor to substitute other pain killers for hydrocodone after weaning and see if he is alright with it.