Oxycodone can be administered orally, intravenously, via intravenous, intramuscular, subcutaneous injection or rectally. Some people are fast metabolizers resulting in reduced analgesic effect but increased adverse effects, while others are slow metabolisers resulting in increased toxicity without improved analgesia. The dose of OxyContin must be reduced in patients with reduced hepatic function.

Oxycodone is approximately 1.5–2 times as potent as morphine when administered orally. However, 10–15 mg of oxycodone produces an analgesic effect similar to 10 mg of morphine when administered intramuscularly. Therefore, as a parenteral dose, morphine is approximately up to 50% more potent than oxycodone. Oxycodone and its metabolites are mainly excreted in the urine and sweat; therefore, it accumulates in patients with renal impairment.

There are no comparative trials showing that oxycodone is more effective than any other opioid. In palliative care, morphine remains the gold standard, however, oxycodone can be useful as an alternative opioid if a patient has troublesome adverse effects with morphine.

The most commonly reported effects include constipation, fatigue, dizziness, nausea, lightheadedness, headache, dry mouth, anxiety, pruritus, euphoria, and diaphoresis. It has also been claimed to cause dimness in vision due to miosis. Some patients have also experienced loss of appetite, nervousness, abdominal pain, diarrhea, ischuria, dyspnea, and hiccups, although these symptoms appear in less than 5% of patients taking oxycodone.

Rarely, the drug can cause impotence, enlarged prostate gland, and decreased testosterone secretion. Compared to morphine, oxycodone causes less respiratory depression, sedation, pruritus, nausea, and euphoria. As a result, it is generally better tolerated than morphine.

In high doses, overdoses, or in patients not tolerant to opiates, oxycodone can cause shallow breathing, bradycardia, cold, clammy skin, apnea, hypotension, miosis (pupil constriction), circulatory collapse, respiratory arrest, and death.

There is a high risk of experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms if a patient discontinues oxycodone abruptly. Therefore therapy should be gradually discontinued rather than abruptly discontinued. People who use oxycodone in a hazardous or harmful fashion are at even higher risk of severe withdrawal symptoms as they tend to use higher than prescribed doses. The symptoms of oxycodone detox are the same as for other opiate based painkillers and may include “anxiety, nausea, insomnia, muscle pain, muscle weakness, fevers, and other flu like symptoms.

Withdrawal symptoms have also been reported in a newborn whose mother had been either injecting OxyContin or orally taking percocet during pregnancy. We strongly recommend to everyone reading this article to use oxycodone only with medical prescription and under medical control, however, if you or someone close to you have problems with oxycodone addiction, we suggest you to visit Drug Rehabilitation Canada