Patient was educated on the side effects of using Tylenol # 3 as follows:
- Hepatic damage and pancreatitis
- Tylenol # 3 intake can lead to hepatic injury and acute pancreatitis, thus compromising liver function and overall body metabolism.
- Hepatic injury and altered liver function can result in increased bilirubin levels in the body, resulting in itching, jaundice with yellowing of skin and sclera, dark urine, altered metabolism with nausea and vomiting, pain in the right upper abdominal quadrant, and fatigue.
- Respiratory depression
- Tylenol # 3 affects the respiratory center in the brain through action on the opioid receptors in the brain.
- This induces slowing down of respirations and the breathing pattern can become irregular.
- This can result in reduced gas exchange with elevated carbon dioxide and reduced oxygen levels in the body.
- Overdose of Tylenol # 3 can also cause respiratory arrest.
- Feeling of high and addiction
- Tylenol # 3, in the process of altering the perception of pain in the brain, promotes more dopamine in the brain.
- Increased dopamine in the brain produces a feeling of high, by interacting with the brain’s reward circuit.
- This feeling of high, experienced by the individuals on Tylenol # 3 use, becomes highly desirable and thus adds the potential for addiction to Tylenol # 3.
- This makes Tylenol # 3 one of the most commonly abused drugs.
- Withdrawal syndrome
- Reducing your dosage gradually over a period is the preferred way to quit Tylenol # 3.
- Sudden withdrawal from Tylenol # 3 may induce intense unpleasant sensations, such as, nausea, vomiting, intense muscle aches, sleep disturbances, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea.
- Skin rash
- Tylenol # 3 intake can result in mild skin rash and dermatitis.
