Painkiller overdoses

Painkiller abuse

These are great questions! Opioid analgesics (a.k.a. prescription painkillers) are a family of substances that act on the central nervous system (CNS) to change the way the brain perceives and responds to painful stimuli. When these painkillers are used in a different way than they were prescribed (i.e., taking more at a time than indicated or for longer than originally prescribed) or for long ...

Poisonings and Overdoses

I and accidental poisonings and substance abuse can result in the need for critical care support. In many cases, only supportive care is necessary until the effects of the toxin diminish. However, some poisonings require specific antidotes or interventions to decrease morbidity and mortality. General management principles of poisonings and substance abuse that are pertinent to intensive care ma...

Management of drug overdoses.

Errors inducing radiation overdoses.

There is no doubt that equipments exposing radiation and used for therapeutic purposes should be often checked for possibly administering radiation overdoses to the patients. Technologists, radiation safety officers, radiologists, medical physicists, healthcare providers and administration should take proper care on this issue. "We must be beneficial and not harmful to the patients", according ...

Regulatory colleges to set painkiller guidelines.

In British Columbia, “we found out that most doctors don’t really know the rules of the road when prescribing for someone with chronic non-cancer pain,” says Dr. Robert Vroom, deputy registrar for the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC. “Why should we be punishing our doctors for something they don’t know? This is one of those big gaps in their education and we thought we should do someth...