After You Hear It's Cancer by John Leifer

Author:John Leifer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: undefined
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Published: 2012-04-17T04:00:00+00:00

Methods of Drug Delivery: Advantages and Disadvantages

Different medications prescribed to manage your pain may require different methods of administration. Most over-the-counter medications are orally administered, as are many prescription pain relievers.

Some medications, however, require alternative methods of delivery. When rapid relief is required, you may receive an injection. Injections may be under the skin, known as subcutaneous, directly into a vein (intravenous), or into the fluid-filled cavity surrounding the spinal cord, as is the case with “intraspinal opioids [that] are injected into the fluid around the spinal cord. These may be combined with a local anesthetic to help some patients who have pain that is very hard to control.”[7]

When sustained pain management is required over extended periods of time, your physician may prescribe patches. When applied to the skin, these patches allow the continual administration of a medication over hours or days. The patches can be combined with oral or other forms of medication as needed.

Patients who are unable to swallow pills or capsules may be prescribed suppositories or skin creams. Many of the more common analgesics are available in this form.

If pain is severe enough to warrant a constant infusion of medication into the bloodstream, a pain pump may be inserted into the patient’s IV line.

Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pumps are one way to control pain through your IV line. A PCA pump allows the patient to control the amount of drug that is used. With a PCA pump, you can receive a preset opioid dose by pressing a button on a computerized pump that is connected to a small tube. Once the pain is controlled, the doctor may prescribe regular opioid doses based on the amount you used with the PCA pump.[8]

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