Opioids Facial Flushing from 5mg roxicodone

[mars21]

I was diagnosed with 2 herniated discs in my neck last fall at the age of 29. In the spring of 2015 I started taking one 5/325 percocet twice a day. For the first month or two everything was fine and I wasn't experiencing many side effects at all. Around the third month I started to notice my ears and face would get red and burn. This wouldn't happen right after my dose but hours after I had taken the percocet. Sometimes nothing would happen after the first dose and it wouldn't happen till hours after the second dose of the day. At first the symptoms were pretty strong and my face and ears would be a dark pink. I started taking Hydroxyzine Pam (Vistaril) with each does of percocet. I started out taking one 50mg pill with each dose. That seemed to clear things up for a few months and it helped me sleep also. I've switched to 5mg roxicodone to get away from taking the tylenol since then. I'm now taking one to two hydroxyzine pills with each 5mg roxicodone to keep the symptoms to a minimum. I've tried all kinds of OTC antihistamines (Allegra, Zyrtec, benadryl) but the hydroxyzine seems to work the best. However I am still getting a little flushing from time to time but it only lasts for an hour or less. Recently I've also gotten a script of Hydroxyzine HCL because I heard that could combat the symptoms of flushing better than the Pam version of the drug.

If anyone has experienced similar symptoms and found a good way to treat them I'd appreciate you sharing the information. I was told that aspirin could help prevent the flushing but have only tried that a few times and didn't notice a big difference over just the hydroxyzine. I'm also curious if these symptoms will get better over time or get worse. The 5mg roxicodone already isn't doing as good of a job as it did when I first started taking it so I feel I'll need to increase my dose soon. I would switch to hydrocodone but that has always given me terrible nausea. The flushing is the only side effect that I have noticed in over 6 months of taking the oxycodone so I'd like to figure out a long term way to treat it. I'm only 30 years old now so they don't want to do surgery until they have to.

I'd appreciate any feed back.

Thanks

 

[sekio]

Antihistamines are the first line treatment for flushing and itching caused by opioids, because it's theorized to be opioid induced histamine release that causes e.g. redness and itching.

It would behoove you to find additional other non-narcotics to take rather than increasing your opioid dose, by the way.

 

[mars21]

Antihistamines are the first line treatment for flushing and itching caused by opioids, because it's theorized to be opioid induced histamine release that causes e.g. redness and itching.

It would behoove you to find additional other non-narcotics to take rather than increasing your opioid dose, by the way.

Thanks, I've talked to my doctors about other medicaitons and the only thing they have mentioned is tramadol, and hydrocodone. Are you talking about stopping the use of opiates for my pain and looking for a non-narcotic alternative or adding a non-narcotic to help the pain along with the oxycodone?

Thanks

 

[sekio]

Are you talking about stopping the use of opiates for my pain and looking for a non-narcotic alternative or adding a non-narcotic to help the pain along with the oxycodone?

I mean the latter: studies have shown that adding e.g. a NSAID like ibuprofen in combination with opioids is generally much more effective than opioids alone (this is why people put acetaminophen with opioids in the first place).

It's a much more sustainable course of action rather than increasing your dosage of narcotics, hastening tolerance and increasing the intensity of any resulting side effects.