The Home Drug Test Kits

Vicodin is a derivative of opium, which also used to manufacture heroin. It is the most widely known brand name for a combination of hydrocodone and acetaminophen. Some of its generic equivalents include brand names Lorcet, Lortab, Norco, Panacet and Zydone.

Vicodin Prescription:

Vicodin is one of the most widely prescribed opiate medications for treatment of moderate to severe pain in injury, illness, surgery or a chronic condition across the globe. Overall, it has been reported as an effective, well tolerated opioid for analgesic purposes. It is quite inexpensive, with a mild side effects profile. It is one of the most favored prescribed pain relievers as allergic reactions are highly unlikely with Vicodin.

Vicodin Abuse:

It is estimated that in 1999, 4 million people were using prescription drugs non-medically and out of these 4 million, 2.6 million misused pain relievers the most common of which is Vicodin. In 2000, the National Institute on Drug Abuse listed Vicodin as an emerging recreational drug. Its use has risen steadily each year, and has now achieved the status of no longer being emerging. Vicodin has become one of the most commonly abused prescription medications. In 2006, USA Today reported that more emergency room visits are made by Vicodin and other prescription drugs abusers than by all other illicit drug abusers combined.

Effects of Vicodin Abuse:

Some of the common side effects of Vicodin abuse include confusion, nausea, vomiting, lightheadedness, dizziness, drowsiness, redness of the face, and temporary changes in vision or mood, along with infrequent constipation. These effects can be subdued by drinking a lot of water and consuming fiber rich foods on daily basis.

Over a period of time, effects of Vicodin abuse become more serious and more damaging. There may be cardiac arrhythmia leading to speeding up or slowing down of the heart rate. As Vicodin use grows, its effects can be characterized by blurred vision, hallucinations, and severe confusion.

Vicodin may interact with many other drugs if taken in conjunction, like, various sedatives, tranquilizers, antidepressants, other analgesics, antihistamines, anti-anxiety & anti-spasmodic drugs to name a few. Because of this high potential for drug interactions, it is highly recommended to avoid alcohol, which can increase drowsiness and dizziness, and may cause damage to the liver, and other medications containing acetaminophen.

As with other Opiate drugs, Vicodin withdrawal symptoms include restlessness, muscle pain, bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting, cold flashes, goose bumps, involuntary leg movements, watery eyes, runny nose, loss of appetite, irritability, panic, nausea, chills & sweating to name a few.

Vicodin Testing:

When consumed, some amount of Vicodin remains unchanged in the body while rest of it is metabolized to different secondary products called metabolites. A diverse array of techniques is available nowadays to detect these unchanged Vicodin or Vicodin metabolites, such as:

•Blood sampling for Vicodin/metabolite testing

•Urine based Vicodin/metabolite testing

•Hair follicle based Vicodin/metabolite detection

•GC/MS based Vicodin/metabolite detection

•Vicodin/metabolite-specific antibody based diagnostic kits

GC/MS or Antibody based screening can be done on any of the blood, urine or hair follicle samples. Some companies have also come out with rapid screening kits for home use which can be used without any previous expertise.

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Think  purchasing a home drug test kit to detect narcotic use for your teen is unnecessary?  This might change your mind.  Prescription drugs for teens are the new high.   In a study at the University of Wisconsin, 1 out of  5 students have tried illicit prescription drugs.  Most often  these drugs are viewed as legal and harmless.   After all,  doctors prescribe them, people take them and our parents purchased them legally.  What is the harm?   The harm is this, many teens abuse pills because often these pills are easily accessible and free, that is, they reside  in their parent’s medicine cabinet.  They assume pills cannot hurt them.  Pills, after all, are prescribed by a doctor and are safely used to make a person better.   However, there is danger.  Teens who abuse prescription drugs often do it when they have been drinking  and/or using other drugs.  They also may chew the pill instead of swallowing whole, or they may crush the pill, there by getting a quicker more potent “high” or they may dilute the pills in water and inject it.    Teens also can become more easily addicted to drugs than adults.  Drug addiction is lifelong.  A home drug test can determine if your child is using pain killers.

Most often teens will abuse pain killers, drugs such as Oxycodone that are in the opiate class.   Drugs such as oxycodone are very powerful and in the same class as heroin, morphine and codeine.

Signs your child is abusing oxycontin or similar drugs are the following:

• Small pupils
• Tiredness
• Dizziness
• Slow Breathing
• Nausea
• Clammy Skin
• Cold Skin

Be aware that some of these same signs are also associated with alcohol use.   The good news is that you can now test your teen at home, if you suspect any drug  abuse or simply want your child to have a strong detterant to doing drugs.  A  home drug  test can detect use of oxycontin and related drugs.  Home drug testing kits are  also quick, accurate and are done in the privacy of your own home.