Dangers of Injecting Oxycodone
Oxycodone is a part of the class of drugs known as opioids. Typically these drugs are taken, whether by legitimate prescription or when they’re abused, as oral tablets. Some people, however, abuse them in other ways, including by injecting them.
When people are looking for information on how to inject oxycodone, it’s important that they’re aware of the risks of doing so. Abusing oxycodone through any route of administration is dangerous, but the dangers of injecting oxycodone are even greater.
The following is an overview of oxycodone, how to inject oxycodone, and the dangers of injecting oxycodone.
One of the most well-known brand names of oxycodone is OxyContin, but it’s also in brand-name drugs like Roxicodone and Oxydose. Oxycodone combination drugs include Endocet, which is a combination of oxycodone and acetaminophen, and Percodan, which includes oxycodone and aspirin.
While oxycodone is primarily used in pill form, there are also liquid versions of oxycodone.
While oxycodone and other opioids can effectively treat pain and do have therapeutic uses, they’re also very addictive, and people build a physical dependence to them relatively quickly.
The risk of addiction when using a prescription opioid like oxycodone is higher in people who are predisposed to having a substance abuse problem. For example, someone with a past history of substance abuse may be at a greater risk of becoming addicted when using oxycodone.
Oxycodone causes users to feel high because of how it interacts with the opioid receptors in the central nervous system. When people take this medication, particularly large doses, they may feel euphoric, have a sense of well-being, or may feel very relaxed and drowsy. Unfortunately, those feelings do lend themselves to addiction, particularly because oxycodone and other opioids trigger a flood of dopamine into the brain when they’re taken.
Oxycodone is available in immediate-release and extended-release variations, with the extended-release versions of the drug lasting for up to 12 hours.
Drugs like oxycodone are often abused when people take them in ways other than how they’re intended to be used. For example, larger doses can be taken, people may snort it, or it can be injected.
First, can you inject oxycodone?
Yes, you can, but with caveats that are detailed below. Generally, when people want to shoot up oxycodone, they will crush and dissolve the tablets in water, creating a solution that can be intravenously injected.
Some people learn how to shoot oxycodone because it provides them with a faster effect. When any drug is injected, and this includes shooing up oxycodone, it reaches the brain more quickly and the high people feel may also be more powerful.
There are a few things to think about if you’re wondering can you inject oxycodone, however.
First, oxycodone doesn’t necessarily provide the strong rush that other drugs do when it’s injected. Also, the extended-release version of oxycodone is prescribed now in a tamper-proof form.
When someone attempts to inject current versions of extended-release oxycodone, it turns into a gel when they try to crush it. That makes extended-release oxycodone impossible to snort, but it doesn’t always derail people who want to inject it.
First, if you’re shooting oxycodone in an extended-release form, the effects of all of the medicine are hitting your system at once, leaving you at a much higher risk of an overdose. It’s very possible if you’re shooting extended-release oxycodone that you will suffer from respiratory depression and potentially overdose or die.
Injecting any opioid is also more addictive because more of the drug reaches the brain faster.
If you’re a regular injector of oxycodone, the withdrawal you experience when you stop using opioids will also be more difficult, with possible symptoms including nausea, vomiting, depression, insomnia, anxiety and more.
Finally, as with any drug that you’re injecting, when you’re shooting oxycodone you’re also at a higher risk of contracting certain diseases including HIV and hepatitis. Injecting drugs can also damage the veins, cause blood clots, and lead to infections in the heart and lungs.
When you inject anything, it can cause problems with blood circulation, leading to the death of tissue as well.
So, can you inject oxycodone? Yes, theoretically you can, but if you choose to inject oxycodone, you’re at risk of not only the standard dangers of opioids such as addiction and overdose but these risks are even higher.
Have more questions about Oxycodone abuse?
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