Paracetamol why you should know more about it!!
Well, you are not a human if you don't know Paracetamol! Still, if you are reading this and you don't know about Paracetamol then which Planet are you from? Well jokes apart, if you have a headache. Previous day you played sports so hard that you are bit tired today and you get a feeling of fever incurring to your body. Well in these situations what would you do? You would certainly look for the Tablets I am gonna explain about now.
Well let me present you the basic facts about Paracetamol:
Paracetamol is a medical drug, also known as ‘acetaminophen’.
Its chemical name is ‘N-acetyl-p-aminophenol’.
Paracetamol is an analgesic and antipyretic, which means it is used to relieve pain and lower fevers.
Paracetamol was first used by the German physician, Joseph von Mering, on his patients in 1887, after it was created by Harmon Northrop Morse, an American chemist, ten years earlier.
Paracetamol usually comes in the form of a 500 mg tablet or capsule, but can also come in a liquid form, and is usually taken every four to eight hours to keep pain or fever reduced until symptoms subside.
Paracetamol was not commonly used for 60 years after it was first used in 1887, because another substance, phenacetin, was more widely promoted.
Paracetamol is considered safe for most people of all ages, although people who have liver problems should talk to their doctor before taking any.
Some people may have side effects of stomach pains or skin rash after taking paracetamol, and others can be allergic to paracetamol, with symptoms of hives, swelling of the face and/or difficulty in breathing.
In 1947, paracetamol was fully investigated and tested for its suitability for patients, and then its use was promoted when it was first marketed in 1953 by Sterling-Winthrop Co, in the United States of America, although it wasn’t until the 1970s that it became a widely used drug.
Originally, paracetamol required a prescription for its purchase from pharmacies, but today prescriptions are rarely needed, and it is commonly available in supermarkets, in different branded packets.
Well, I have presented you the common facts ugly presented. If you understood, cool. If not, still no problem totally my mistake so let me present you information about paracetamol in a more understandable manner.
Well, it is significant that paracetamol overdose can cause fatal effects, it is stereotyped that paracetamol causes no side effects when consumed within a recommended dose.Well, we can't infer that also because this is also increasingly questioned by scientists, who claim that taking it over long periods can have serious effects. Well, this might seem a risk worth taking it but recent research suggests that this drug has either doesn't work or has a very small effect.
Paracetamol rose to being used during the 1960s in the fears that aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen caused gastric bleeding, ulcers and other side-effects seriously. Some concerns were raised that long-term usage of paracetamol could cause gastric bleeding, but the evidence for that was mixed for many years.
However, in 2011, Professor Michael Doherty, a rheumatologist at Nottingham University, published a study looking at almost 900 patients aged 40 and older who took paracetamol, ibuprofen or a combination of both for chronic knee pain. When he compared the participants after 13 weeks, it came as no surprise that one in five on ibuprofen lost the equivalent of a unit of blood through internal bleeding. What was surprising was that so, too, had the same proportion of patients who were taking paracetamol.
“Paracetamol can actually be a very dangerous drug,” says Dr X, who retired from practice in Northallerton, North Yorkshire. “It can cause kidney and liver problems and causes as much gastrointestinal bleeding as the NSAIDs.”
In 2013, the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) had issued warnings that consuming paracetamol can, in some rare instances, cause potentially fatal skin conditions called Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis and acute generalised exanthematous pustulosis, which can cause the top layer of skin to become detached.
The maximum 24-hour dose of paracetamol is 4g which is equivalent to 4000grams that means a 1000mg paracetamol tablet can be taken as much as four times a day but as little as 5g can cause liver complications, and it can be easy to overdose accidentally by taking more than one product containing it at the same time. Well for an example you have a headache, so you would take some paracetamol, and if you get cold you will take a cold product such as Cheston cold which also contains paracetamol. So without your idea, you would have consumed paracetamol dosage above 4g which is the main reason for causing liver complication. People don’t necessarily look at the small print
Last year, the FDA reduced the maximum dose of paracetamol (called acetaminophen in the US) in tablets or capsules to 325mg to reduce the risk of accidental overdoses.
In the UK, in draft guidelines issued in 2013, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) advised GPs(General Practitioner) that they should no longer prescribe paracetamol for osteoarthritis, suggesting it had “limited benefit” and they highlighted links of higher doses to cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and renal problems. Doctors, though, were very quick to criticize the new advice on the grounds that it would leave them either telling patients to simply endure their pain or lead to greater use of stronger, individually more harmful opiate-based alternatives such as tramadol and diamorphine.
Well, almost all medicines have some side-effects, and taking them always involves balancing the possible dangers against the benefits. Perhaps are the downsides of paracetamol worth the risks? Yet a 2006 review by the respected Cochrane Collaboration found that of seven previous studies comparing paracetamol with placebos, two found no difference in pain sensations, and the others found an improvement averaging 5%, an improvement the authors described as of “questionable clinical significance”.
“For most people, it’s a placebo,” says Dr X. “It’s a bit like when they say that if you swear at your wife or your husband, you feel better. It’s the same sort of concept.”
Another review of previous research published by Moore and colleagues last year found that paracetamol provided pain relief for some people with a migraine and tension headaches, but was of little help for those with chronic back, cancer, post-operative, period and paediatric pain, as well as for rheumatoid and osteoarthritis.
Research published in the BMJ in March found paracetamol was ineffective for acute lower back pain and that, compared with placebo, it had only a “small, clinically irrelevant” effect on pain and disability for osteoarthritis suffers. It also highlighted evidence that those taking it regularly were almost four times more likely to have abnormal liver function test results.
Lead author Gustavo Machado, from the George Institute for Global Health at the University of Sydney, and colleagues concluded: “Our results, therefore provide an argument to reconsider the endorsement of paracetamol in clinical practice guidelines for low back pain and hip or knee osteoarthritis.”
Okay, the real problem is that the old model of judging drugs on the basis of research that averages out their effects that makes little sense when these can vary dramatically between individuals. “What we’re recognising now is that with paracetamol, as with all analgesics, there are some people for whom it can provide good pain relief and others in whom it has no effect at all,” says Moore. In such cases, perhaps it makes sense for patients to take a greater role in managing their own treatment, working with medical professionals to find out what works for them.
“If you look at asthma or diabetes, these are really well self-managed conditions because people are empowered taking the fact that they have a sympathy on us but what about pain which we’re not used to the concept of self-management of pain. In fact, patients shouldn’t be using paracetamol habitually. But they overlook the long-term side effects and use it habitually which affects their liver and then they feel bad they should not have taken it habitually. Rather, they should take them when they have pain and when they’re going to do something that normally provokes pain, such a going for a long walk. They should also consider other ways to manage pain such as hot baths and stretching exercises.”
Dr X agrees that a difficult shift in the mindset of doctors and patients on how to use paracetamol and other painkillers is overdue. “Doctors have traditionally said, ‘No, you shouldn’t have pain, and we’ll give you something to stop it,’” he says. “What we have to get across to people is that pain itself isn’t doing any harm, it’s not something you can cure and sometimes it makes sense not to take anything. We have to learn to manage pain more proportionately.
“It’s not going to be easy because it’s a cultural problem, but Doctor X view is that within five years they will no longer be prescribing paracetamol for chronic pain relief.”
So you decide whether Paracetamol does harm or good! I have just presented the facts, you need to infer from it.
Edits: Dr X is Dr John Dickson
Well, you are not a human if you don't know Paracetamol! Still, if you are reading this and you don't know about Paracetamol then which Planet are you from? Well jokes apart, if you have a headache. Previous day you played sports so hard that you are bit tired today and you get a feeling of fever incurring to your body. Well in these situations what would you do? You would certainly look for the Tablets I am gonna explain about now.
Well let me present you the basic facts about Paracetamol:
Paracetamol is a medical drug, also known as ‘acetaminophen’.
Its chemical name is ‘N-acetyl-p-aminophenol’.
Paracetamol is an analgesic and antipyretic, which means it is used to relieve pain and lower fevers.
Paracetamol was first used by the German physician, Joseph von Mering, on his patients in 1887, after it was created by Harmon Northrop Morse, an American chemist, ten years earlier.
Paracetamol usually comes in the form of a 500 mg tablet or capsule, but can also come in a liquid form, and is usually taken every four to eight hours to keep pain or fever reduced until symptoms subside.
Paracetamol was not commonly used for 60 years after it was first used in 1887, because another substance, phenacetin, was more widely promoted.
Paracetamol is considered safe for most people of all ages, although people who have liver problems should talk to their doctor before taking any.
Some people may have side effects of stomach pains or skin rash after taking paracetamol, and others can be allergic to paracetamol, with symptoms of hives, swelling of the face and/or difficulty in breathing.
In 1947, paracetamol was fully investigated and tested for its suitability for patients, and then its use was promoted when it was first marketed in 1953 by Sterling-Winthrop Co, in the United States of America, although it wasn’t until the 1970s that it became a widely used drug.
Originally, paracetamol required a prescription for its purchase from pharmacies, but today prescriptions are rarely needed, and it is commonly available in supermarkets, in different branded packets.
Well, I have presented you the common facts ugly presented. If you understood, cool. If not, still no problem totally my mistake so let me present you information about paracetamol in a more understandable manner.
Paracetamol rose to being used during the 1960s in the fears that aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen caused gastric bleeding, ulcers and other side-effects seriously. Some concerns were raised that long-term usage of paracetamol could cause gastric bleeding, but the evidence for that was mixed for many years.
However, in 2011, Professor Michael Doherty, a rheumatologist at Nottingham University, published a study looking at almost 900 patients aged 40 and older who took paracetamol, ibuprofen or a combination of both for chronic knee pain. When he compared the participants after 13 weeks, it came as no surprise that one in five on ibuprofen lost the equivalent of a unit of blood through internal bleeding. What was surprising was that so, too, had the same proportion of patients who were taking paracetamol.
“Paracetamol can actually be a very dangerous drug,” says Dr X, who retired from practice in Northallerton, North Yorkshire. “It can cause kidney and liver problems and causes as much gastrointestinal bleeding as the NSAIDs.”
In 2013, the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) had issued warnings that consuming paracetamol can, in some rare instances, cause potentially fatal skin conditions called Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis and acute generalised exanthematous pustulosis, which can cause the top layer of skin to become detached.
The maximum 24-hour dose of paracetamol is 4g which is equivalent to 4000grams that means a 1000mg paracetamol tablet can be taken as much as four times a day but as little as 5g can cause liver complications, and it can be easy to overdose accidentally by taking more than one product containing it at the same time. Well for an example you have a headache, so you would take some paracetamol, and if you get cold you will take a cold product such as Cheston cold which also contains paracetamol. So without your idea, you would have consumed paracetamol dosage above 4g which is the main reason for causing liver complication. People don’t necessarily look at the small print
Last year, the FDA reduced the maximum dose of paracetamol (called acetaminophen in the US) in tablets or capsules to 325mg to reduce the risk of accidental overdoses.
In the UK, in draft guidelines issued in 2013, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) advised GPs(General Practitioner) that they should no longer prescribe paracetamol for osteoarthritis, suggesting it had “limited benefit” and they highlighted links of higher doses to cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and renal problems. Doctors, though, were very quick to criticize the new advice on the grounds that it would leave them either telling patients to simply endure their pain or lead to greater use of stronger, individually more harmful opiate-based alternatives such as tramadol and diamorphine.
Well, almost all medicines have some side-effects, and taking them always involves balancing the possible dangers against the benefits. Perhaps are the downsides of paracetamol worth the risks? Yet a 2006 review by the respected Cochrane Collaboration found that of seven previous studies comparing paracetamol with placebos, two found no difference in pain sensations, and the others found an improvement averaging 5%, an improvement the authors described as of “questionable clinical significance”.
“For most people, it’s a placebo,” says Dr X. “It’s a bit like when they say that if you swear at your wife or your husband, you feel better. It’s the same sort of concept.”
Another review of previous research published by Moore and colleagues last year found that paracetamol provided pain relief for some people with a migraine and tension headaches, but was of little help for those with chronic back, cancer, post-operative, period and paediatric pain, as well as for rheumatoid and osteoarthritis.
Research published in the BMJ in March found paracetamol was ineffective for acute lower back pain and that, compared with placebo, it had only a “small, clinically irrelevant” effect on pain and disability for osteoarthritis suffers. It also highlighted evidence that those taking it regularly were almost four times more likely to have abnormal liver function test results.
Lead author Gustavo Machado, from the George Institute for Global Health at the University of Sydney, and colleagues concluded: “Our results, therefore provide an argument to reconsider the endorsement of paracetamol in clinical practice guidelines for low back pain and hip or knee osteoarthritis.”
Okay, the real problem is that the old model of judging drugs on the basis of research that averages out their effects that makes little sense when these can vary dramatically between individuals. “What we’re recognising now is that with paracetamol, as with all analgesics, there are some people for whom it can provide good pain relief and others in whom it has no effect at all,” says Moore. In such cases, perhaps it makes sense for patients to take a greater role in managing their own treatment, working with medical professionals to find out what works for them.
“If you look at asthma or diabetes, these are really well self-managed conditions because people are empowered taking the fact that they have a sympathy on us but what about pain which we’re not used to the concept of self-management of pain. In fact, patients shouldn’t be using paracetamol habitually. But they overlook the long-term side effects and use it habitually which affects their liver and then they feel bad they should not have taken it habitually. Rather, they should take them when they have pain and when they’re going to do something that normally provokes pain, such a going for a long walk. They should also consider other ways to manage pain such as hot baths and stretching exercises.”
Dr X agrees that a difficult shift in the mindset of doctors and patients on how to use paracetamol and other painkillers is overdue. “Doctors have traditionally said, ‘No, you shouldn’t have pain, and we’ll give you something to stop it,’” he says. “What we have to get across to people is that pain itself isn’t doing any harm, it’s not something you can cure and sometimes it makes sense not to take anything. We have to learn to manage pain more proportionately.
“It’s not going to be easy because it’s a cultural problem, but Doctor X view is that within five years they will no longer be prescribing paracetamol for chronic pain relief.”
So you decide whether Paracetamol does harm or good! I have just presented the facts, you need to infer from it.
Edits: Dr X is Dr John Dickson
Comments
Post a Comment