Vicodin is a painkiller that has become one of the most commonly used ones and it is no wonder. The fact is that this medication is among the most efficient painkillers on the market, especially for treating moderate to severe pain that can result from different causes, such as injuries or surgeries, or even from certain medical conditions. It has been compared in a number of studies to other similar medications, most notably morphine and codeine and it has been found to be much more effective than codeine and slightly more effective than morphine. Also, it has become one of the medications that are very well known, both through the media and also because its efficiency has become widely known.

In this article, we will try and explain the mechanism in which Vicodin works as clearly and as efficiently as possible, not leaving out the crucial information, but also trying to make it understandable to the Average Joe.The first thing you need to know about Vicodin when we are talking about the medication and especially when we are talking about the way it works is that it is a combination of two different medications. Namely, in Vicodin, two distinct medications have been combined in order to achieve extra beneficial effects.
The first of the two medications is hydrocodone. This medication is an opioid analgesic (painkiller) which is derived either from codeine or thebaine, which are opiates which occur in the nature, in poppy seeds. As do the other opiates and opioids, hydrocodone works by affecting the way in which central nervous system registers pain. This is achieved by binding to the opioid receptors that are found in the CNS.

As hydrocodone binds to these receptors, they are less likely to receive the pain impulses that arrive from the place of the injury or the place where pain originates. This results in much relief from pain.
The second medication in Vicodin is acetaminophen, also known as paracetamol, depending on the country. This medication is another analgesic, although much less powerful than hydrocodone. It also has certain antipyretic properties, meaning that it alleviates fever, as well as anti-inflammatory properties that differ in strength depending on the circumstances, but that are usually not very strong. The way in which paracetamol works is different from the hydrocodone’s mechanism of action and it includes inhibiting the enzyme called cyclooxygenase, which is responsible for the release of different mediators some of which are responsible for pain.

However, the beneficial effects of Vicodin are not simply the sum of the beneficial effects of hydrocodone and paracetamol. The beneficial effects of Vicodin are greater than this, as a certain process takes place, known as drug synergy. This process has yet to be explained in detail, but the simple fact is that the medications are much more potent in this combination than they are separately.
We hope that this article has explained the way in which Vicodin works clearly and efficiently, without over-simplifying and also without over-complicating it too much. We also hope that you will now appreciate even more the science and the hard work that has gone into developing this amazing painkiller drug.

Vicodin is a painkiller, a very potent painkiller and it is used primarily for short-term relief of pain. This pain may be cause by different things, such as surgery, injuries or certain medical conditions that cause moderate to severe pain, for which Vicodin is perfect. Vicodin is a combination [...] Continue Reading…

Vicodin is a compound drug, which means that it is a combination of two separate drugs, in this case hydrocodone and paracetamol (also known as acetaminophen). Vicodin is primarily used for treating pain that ranges from moderate to severe, caused either by injury, surgery or anything else. It should [...] Continue Reading…

The question of safety of opiates and opioids has been one that has been addressed many times and it is one of the most talked about things concerning these medications. There are a few reasons for this. The most important reason for this is that these drugs, including Vicodin [...] Continue Reading…

As you already probably know by now, Vicodin is a strong painkiller that is commonly prescribed to people suffering from pain that is ranging from moderate to severe. It is used for treating pain that arises from injuries, operations and certain medical conditions that are accompanied by severe pain. [...] Continue Reading…

One of the most important questions about every prescription drug, including Vicodin is how exactly is the patient to take it. As we wish this website to become the place where people go for the information on Vicodin, we had to cover the proper way to take this medication [...] Continue Reading…

No one can deny the fact that buying medications online has become all the rage in the last few years. It is simply much more convenient, significantly cheaper (especially in the long run) and in certain cases, the anonymity of ordering medications online, as opposed to going to your [...] Continue Reading…

We have started this blogsite in hope that people will finally be able to find an objective source of information about this medication that is often used and quite commonly prescribed and that has got a lot of bad press in the last few years. As we wish to [...] Continue Reading…

Before we try and answer the question from the title of this article, we believe we should say a thing or two about Vicodin, as this will greatly help us understand if this medication can cause sleepiness and how often this happens.Vicodin is a painkiller that is made from [...] Continue Reading…

Whenever there is talk about painkillers, there is talk about addiction and dependency to the medications. It is important to differentiate between addiction and dependency. They are technically the same, but there are also differences that are mostly social in nature. For example, if you start acting shifty, switching [...] Continue Reading…