Scientific Insight: Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine highlights that non-opioid medications like acetaminophen and NSAIDs are associated with fewer adverse events and are often preferred for long-term pain management.
NEWS2
NEWS AND INFORMATION <continued>
5 Benefits of Non-Opioid Pain Relief
2. Fewer Side Effects
What do visitors to your website need to know about you and your business?While almost all medications have some sort of side effects, non-opioid pain relievers generally have fewer and less severe side effects compared to opioids. Opioids can cause a wide range of side effects, including, but not limited to, constipation, nausea, drowsiness, respiratory depression, and cognitive impairment. Many non-opioid medications have milder side effect profiles, improving overall quality of life for patients. In some cases there are patients who enjoy the cognitive impairment and often times with that comes the implied connection that if you DONT feel cognitive impairment than maybe your medicine isn't workng. From where I sit, if you ARE feeling Cognitive Impairment you should speak to your Dr. about lowering your dose. Although Chemistry is an exact Science, and one day BIO Chemistry may be considered an exact science, in todays world there are far too many variables to be able to test for and weed out everything, so often its a “try and see what works.”
NSAIDS may be considered as low or lesser side effects, but its not zero. For instance, NSAIDs can cause gastrointestinal issues, but they typically do not lead to respiratory depression or sedation, which are common concerns with opioid use. However from personal experience I can tell you that constant long term use of NSAIDS can cause certain liver/kidney issues.
