'Nurofen Plus - the hidden drug scourge'

[Conan Troutman]

Nurofen Plus - the hidden drug scourge

January 08, 2008 12:00pm

Article from: NEWS.com.au

By Mark Schliebs

BEHIND closed doors, many Australians are feeding a secret and dangerous addiction to a popular over-the-counter painkiller.

Nurofen Plus - which can be bought in packs of up to 72 tablets and which has been linked to the death of a 49-year-old woman in the UK - has become a demon for thousands of users of seeking help on online forums.

The founder of a popular Australian forum, which has seen 7000 addicts register since 2003, estimated 5 per cent of the population could be addicted to the codeine in Nurofen Plus.

A packet of 72 tablets - three times the size of the standard packet of 24 - can be bought for under $25 at pharmacies.

The forum's founder - who did not want to be named in order to protect his identity and those of people using the forum - said one of his friends had been taken to hospital several times because of ulcers caused by abuse of the drug.

“There would be people out there that have died because of the codeine,” the forum’s founder told NEWS.com.au.

“I don’t know any social circle where (addiction) isn’t happening.”

Ulcers, organ damage

He said the forum was developed after he discovered some of his friends were addicted to codeine and developed medical conditions from ibuprofen, also an ingredient in Nurofen Plus.

“People (can get) really bad ulcers… which can perforate the stomach.”

He said others had experienced kidney and liver damage because of their “secret” addictions, which he likened to the “behind-closed-doors” valium addictions of last century.

A spokeswoman for Nurofen Plus manufacturer Reckitt Benckiser today said all packaging clearly stated that no more than six tablets should be consumed within 24 hours and the drug should not be used for more than three consecutive days without advice from a doctor.

“The directions for use clearly list the conditions each product is suitable to treat, the cautions for use, the recommended dose, directions for use and when it should not be taken,” manager for medical marketing Carolyn Winkler said.

"Crisis point"

Last week, a mother who said she had been taking high doses of other drugs like panadeine forte and stress-reducing benzodiazepines, posted a comment on the Nurofen Plus addicts' forum describing how she had reached “crisis point”.

“My doctor is sending me to a psychiatric clinic that deals with the addiction (not sure how yet) as well as medication for depression and anxiety and counselling,” she said.

“I have to stop permanently this time, I can't handle it anymore.”

Another forum user, a man in his early 20s, posted a comment on Sunday about consuming 72 Nurofen Plus tablets on some days.

“I know I need to quit but that’s up to me to make the move,” he said in the post.

“I guess codeine addiction is actually kinda lonely and just having people to talk to would help.”

Significant problem

In the latest edition of the Medical Journal of Australia, Dr Martin Dutch of The Angliss Hospital in Melbourne wrote that misuse of Nurofen Plus was a “significant” problem.

“Over a six-month period, two patients presented (themselves) to a community hospital emergency department with perforated gastric ulcers as the result of recreational misuse of over-the-counter ibuprofen–codeine preparations,” Dr Dutch said.

“Misuse of these medications appears to be an emerging cause of significant morbidity in patients with codeine addiction.”

Although only a small number of codeine-related deaths have been reported, a recent case gained worldwide attention into the dangers of being addicted to the painkiller.

Mother dies

Last month, a London coroner was told that 49-year-old Linda Docherty took as many as 64 Nurofen Plus tablets a day before dying last March.

The coroner found Ms Docherty died “by reason of an addiction to over-the-counter medication”.

In an article in the January 2005 edition of the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, doctors at the UK’s Taunton and Somerset Hospital said addictions to Nurofen Plus could easily go undiagnosed.

Doctors Paul Lambert and Colin Close said in their paper - Life-threatening hypokalaemia from abuse of Nurofen Plus that a 45-year-old’s addiction was not discovered until months after her first visit to their hospital.

“From another source we learned that her flat was littered with empty Nurofen Plus packets, and she later described regularly consuming 28 grams a day of ibuprofen,” the doctors said.

“We believe this is an important issue to raise, because in the present case… the ibuprofen was an over-the-counter preparation.

“Abuse of such agents can easily escape notice.”

SOURCE

not one mention of CWE teks..dissappointing...

stock up now, stupid people abusing they're livers with Ibuprofen will prick the TGA's ears no doubt. (if they havent been already)

Edited January 9, 2008 by Conan Troutman

[Francois le Danque]

cold water extraction people...gee whiz. or does that only work for paractamol? i better go check.

yes, yes it does work with ibuprofen. that article is ridiculous. well it's contents are. but now watch what they will do instead of addressing the real issue they will just ban codeine from OTCs. silly people.

Edited January 9, 2008 by frank

[XipeTotec]

this appears to be a case of obvious heavy abuse... you would have to be pretty thick to be using nurofen plus in this way. . It is probably more of an issue that this pain killer has become one of choice for many people... whom will pop a pill at the slightest sign of discomfort.

[t st tantra]

maybe this is a reflection of the poor level of pain relief offered to people.

all the good stuff is illegal and relatively hard to get.

doctors are under much scrutiny nowadays and can be reluctant to prescribe.

i had a doctor who would not prescribe or carry any pain relief,even fortes,i dont think they should have that choice.

people in pain dont always make the best decisions.

t s t .

[XipeTotec]

maybe this is a reflection of the poor level of pain relief offered to people.

t s t .

i dont think it is. I think we are a society of, "solution in a pill", and generally, we have a low acceptance/tolerance of pain (amongst other things), and will more than happily take a pain relief tablet than have a lie down. Im not talking about chronic pain sufferers here, Im talking about, "healthy" 18-50 year olds... who may actually only be experiencing headaches etc as a result of poor diet, and low water intake, or lack of physical activity.

In regards to being a pill popping society, I doubt many would dispute this, particularly when we look at how many people are on anti depressants, and adha medication, in my opinion, unnecessarily (im not saying that some shouldn't be on them, but there does seem be be a disturbing trend.). The fact is the medical profession are more likely to prescribe a pharmaceutical than a change in diet, or lifestyle.

Edited January 10, 2008 by XipeTotec

[chilli]

The fact is the medical profession are more likely to prescribe a pharmaceutical than a change in diet, or lifestyle.

Nice "fact," care to back it up?

*edit* By the way, I agree with you about the pill popping society angle... I just smashed my big head into the roof (told you I was tall), and the first thing I thought as I squatted there crying, swearing and rubbing my head was "It's OK, I have so many options for painkillers"

Also, whenever my wife has a headache I say "take a pill" and if she doesn't, I give her an encouraging lecture about how there is no virtue in needless suffering, and if she can remove the pain she should... it's weird, because whenever I have pain I tend to take pills only as a last resort as well... actually I still haven't taken anything for smashing my head.

I was thinking about it though, and it seems like a lot of the time people (including me) have an attitude that taking pills is kind of undesirable or profane, but what is the difference between taking pills or plants? If we had a tea that miraculously took away pain and made us feel great then what could possibly be wrong with drinking it all the time? Surely no problems could arise?

I hope someone gets that, I didn't put in much effort I'm afraid.

Edited January 10, 2008 by IllegalBrain

[AndyAmine.]

There is one IB, poppy cap or opium tea as long as you have enough to last a lifetime.

[XipeTotec]

Nice "fact," care to back it up?

yes, with my fist

[chilli]

There is one IB, poppy cap or opium tea as long as you have enough to last a lifetime.

Andy you devil , that was the part I was hoping someone would get! Is that vague? I think it's a bit vague.

____________________________________

Shroomy, if you try it on with me little man I can promise you will live to regret it.

Because I will cry and feel rejected, and I'm quite good at making people feel guilty when I want to, so I will do that and when you see my pitiful, cringing state you will feel, if not remorse or mercy, at least pity, and as you despise my downtrodden soul from the lofty heights of your powerful stature my words will crawl pathetically up to you from the dust I am grovelling and choking in "save me, save me, master... have mercy" I will cry as I lay prostrate before you and then suddenly the sky will tear apart like a painted box and as pills and plants rain down and run down my brow, and are soaked up by the earth at my feet everyone will see that I was right all along. Amen.

[ThunderIdeal]

lmao

seriously, original or cut and paste?

[FungalFractoids]

Ah the bastards are onto it. Oh well, codeine is nasty as shit anyway. And I don't think you can split them in half like you used to so you could throw away all the horrid ibuprofen. No great loss imo