Muscle Relaxers!

[Madeline]

"coating or capsule".

Table of meds ok to split, and meds that shouldn't be split:

Pros and cons of pill splitting — The Journal of Family Practice

Well now this is actually helpful information, Allie. I suspected you could do it.

 

[AllieBaba]

Depakote also does terrible things to teeth.

But anything that is time release, people should be very, very careful about splitting because of the potential of causing too much of the med to be released all at once. And a lot of meds are time release (including, I believe, many of the pain meds).

 

[AllieBaba]

"However, no studies have been conducted to confirm the safety of this practice. In fact, many in the medical community, including the American Medical Association , the American Pharmaceutical Association , and the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists , strongly oppose pill-splitting policies.

Risk of Dosing Errors

Pill splitting involves a number of risks. Those who promote the practice often omit how splitting medications negatively impacts patient safety by increasing dosing errors . Many pills cannot be split, and those that can be split do not necessarily guarantee the proper dose.

Tablets often break or crumble unevenly, and even tablets with scores (a small groove down the center) don't always split evenly - potentially leading to situations where patients either under- or over-dose on their medications.

Pills That Should Never Be Split

There are multiple types of medications that should never be split due to an increased potential for dosing errors. These include:

Capsules - These may contain a liquid, powder, or tiny pellets, which when cut open, cannot be divided equally. Time-released medicines - These may also be called long-acting, controlled-release, or extended-release medicines. Splitting one of these pills is dangerous since it would cause a patient to receive several hours worth of medication all at once. Enteric-coated medicines - These types of pills release medicine after it has passed through the stomach. Splitting these pills may release the medicine too soon and cause stomach irritation or reduce the drug's effectiveness. Transdermal patches - Some patches contain a liquid or gel inside, which if cut would either release the drug too quickly or reduce the amount of medication transmitted. Also, the patch may not stick to the skin as well if it has been cut. "

Defective Drug Information - Dangers of Splitting Medications

 

[AllieBaba]

"Saving money is good. Unfortunately, splitting some medications may end up causing more harm than good. The chart below outlines some common negative effects that are associated with splitting those medications.


Negative Effect(s) Medication(s)
More medicine released or too much medicine too fast Covera-HS (verapamil), extended-release oxycodone and morphine tablets
Reduced stability due to air exposure K-Lyte Effervescent tablets (potassium chloride)
Upset stomach and/or foul taste in one’s mouth Cipro (ciprofloxacin), Bayer Low Adult Strength (coated aspirin)
Tablet breaks apart and is unusable Nitrostat (nitroglycerin)
Uneven dosage, with more medicine in one half than in the other—especially critical when the therapeutic or beneficial dose is nearly the same as the unsafe or toxic dose Lanoxin (digoxin), Synthroid levothyroxin)"

"The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) and the American Medical Association (AMA) are formally against the tablet-splitting that some insurance companies have tried to require.2 "

Tablet Splitting | Effects of Pill Splitting | Problems & Risks

 

[AllieBaba]

Flexeril is one of the ones you shouldn't split:

"A research study investigating the appropriateness of pill splitting suggests that back pain sufferers who divide a 10-mg tablet of the muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine hydrochloride (HCl) in order to achieve a 5-mg dose may get anywhere from half to one-and-a-half times the amount of medicine they believe they are taking. This practice may either deprive them of the intended therapeutic benefit of the medication or expose them to unintended side effects such as drowsiness. The findings appear in the September/October issue of the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association."

Splitting Cyclobenzaprine Hydrochloride Could Result in Inconsistent Dosing and Unpredictable Relief For Patients with Back Pain

 

[del]

I don't -- owning a message board sounds like a Trip To Purgatory to me. But Christ onna cracker, woman, can we be allowed to discuss something other than YOU YOU YOU?

And BTW, how in hell can cutting a pain med pill in half make your teeth rot?

Some medications have a coating or capsule which prevents the medication from contacting your teeth. If the outer shell is broken, they destroy your teeth.

That's one reason why so many mentally ill patients have black and rotting teeth. They hold meds in their mouths, they chew them, and over years their teeth deteriorate. Lots of meds come with the warning "do not chew, cut or crush". There's a reason for that.

and it's not because they'll make your teeth turn black and fall off you idiot.

 

[Paulie]

Muscle relaxers are pretty good for coming down off a long night of snorting fat rails of coke.

I'd have Allie out on the corner selling her ass for one line after a night of partying.

 

[AllieBaba]

I don't -- owning a message board sounds like a Trip To Purgatory to me. But Christ onna cracker, woman, can we be allowed to discuss something other than YOU YOU YOU?

And BTW, how in hell can cutting a pain med pill in half make your teeth rot?

Some medications have a coating or capsule which prevents the medication from contacting your teeth. If the outer shell is broken, they destroy your teeth.

That's one reason why so many mentally ill patients have black and rotting teeth. They hold meds in their mouths, they chew them, and over years their teeth deteriorate. Lots of meds come with the warning "do not chew, cut or crush". There's a reason for that.

and it's not because they'll make your teeth turn black and fall off you idiot.

actually, there are meds that do just that. I know because I've administered them.

"Many drugs, both prescription and illegal, can cause tooth damage. Estimates suggest that about 40 per cent of people take at least one type of medicine that could cause tooth damage. "

"Some medications, including prescription drugs and over-the-counter preparations, can damage your teeth. Some of these medications include:
Antihistamines – these can cause dry mouth.
Aspirin – chewing aspirin can directly damage the tooth enamel. Always take aspirin strictly as directed. The tablets should be swallowed whole with water.
Asthma medications – some asthma drugs are highly acidic and can dissolve tooth enamel if used regularly over a long period of time.
Syrups – medicated syrups that contain sugar can increase the risk of tooth decay if teeth are not brushed after these syrups are taken.
This list is not exhaustive. Talk to your doctor, pharmacist or dentist for further information on whether the medications you are taking could harm your teeth."

you idiot.

Teeth and drug use | Better Health Channel

 

[AllieBaba]

The sugary ones, meh, no brainer, that wasn't what I was talking about.

I think some of the anti-convulsive medications are the worst. They have big warnings on the pill bottles that say "do not crush or split, will damage teeth" all over them.

 

[AllieBaba]

Here's a link to people talking about their dental issues with meds:

oxycotin damaged my teeth - The People's Medicine Community

 

[AllieBaba]

" In a recent experiment with clonidine, a medicine for treating high blood pressure in adults and often used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children, Watson's dental research team showed that rats receiving clonidine developed 84 percent more cavities on the smooth surfaces of their teeth than rats not on the medicine.

Watson's group is one of just a handful in the world to study the effects of drugs on cavities. In previous studies he has shown that the drugs atropine and propranolol also boost the cavity rate in rats. The researchers found that propranolol, commonly used to treat heart patients, alters the composition of saliva and makes it less effective, while atropine lessens saliva flow. Drugs that behave like atropine include antihistamines like Benadryl, anti-depressants such as Elavil and Aventyl, and Detrol, which is used to treat incontinence."


Many Common Drugs Promote Tooth Decay