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Hydrocodone , Fort Collins Colorado

Hydrocodone is a semi-synthetic opioid produced from codeine, an opioid found in opium poppy plant. The drug falls under the narcotic analgesics or pain killer medicines. Commonly comes in a liquid form, doctors prescribed the drug to relieve pain, stops and even prevents a cough.  The drug is considered as an opioid which affects the nervous system and used as a pain medication to alleviate moderate to severe pain.

The drug proved as more helpful than codeine for suppressing cough but more deadly that morphine.

History of Hydrocodone

In 1920 Carl Mannich and Helene Lowenheim first synthesized hydrocodone in Germany.  The Food and Drug Administration approved the use of the drug on March 23, 1943. The Health Canada also approved hydrocodone under the brand name, hycodan.

The two added oxygen to codeine to solve the common side effect of it such as stomach discomfort and high level of toxicity.

Knoll first marketed hydrocodone as Dicodid in Germany on February 1924. Within a few years, several drugs came out in the market such as Dilaudid, Dihydrin, Dinarkon and Dimorphan.

Reports of addiction from the drug did not become apparent until 1961, more than 30 years since it first marketed.

How it is abused

As a painkiller, hydrocodone acts in the thousands of opioid receptors on the body. It does not cure the pain through its source, it only changes the patient’s perception of the pain. The feeling can be habit-forming particularly to people who seek the sensation. Some of the sought after sensation includes, numbness, sleepiness, reduced stress even increased the sense of one’s self.


According to the International Narcotics Control Board, hydrocodone is prescribed mainly in the United States. Reports stated that the US consumed about 99% of the international supply in 2007. The prescribed name of Hydrocodone includes Vicodin, Norco, and Lortab.


In a study of the National Institute of Health or NIH, it estimated that 20% of Americans consumed the drug such as Vicodin for non-medical reasons. An increasing number of people abused the drug. A more alarming report came from the Drug Enforcement Administration or DEA in 2013. The report shows that in the US alone, 24 million over the 21 years of age used hydrocodone for no apparent reasons.


One key factor that made hydrocodone as one highly addictive drug is its availability. The DEA reported that 136 hydrocodone dispensed prescription were made in 2013. Numbers continues to rise with an added increase of 20 million of prescription each year since 2006.


Hydrocodone use resulted to an estimated 100,000 abuse-related hospital emergency related in the US for the year 2011. To decrease the numbers, the US government created stricter prescribing rules for the drug in 2014.

Signs and symptoms

Addiction to hydrocodone usually starts with a prescription which leads to its dependence. It then gradually rises for the need to consume hydrocodone in spite of its side effects. The effects of hydrocodone can be deadly like that of morphine and heroin.

The drug works in the reward system of the brain which fortifies for its dependence. Prolonged abuse of the drug can result in the short and long term damage in both physical and mental state.

Mild Side Effects

Patients taking hydrocodone may experience some mild effects which gradually wears off. These may include:

  •    Dizziness
  •    Drowsiness
  •    Headache
  •    Nausea
  •    Muscle weakness
  •    Itchiness
  •    Trouble sleeping

Severe Side Effects of Hydrocodone

Long-term exposure to hydrocodone can lead to irreversible outcomes. The drug can affect the normal function of the brain reward system, thus making it hard to find pleasure in most activities.

Hydrocodone contains depressant quality and can result to some of the serious side effects listed. The drug can slow down the heart rate which may stop the beating of the heart. It is important to seek immediate medical attention when these symptoms are noticed or felt:

  •    Trouble urinating
  •    Slowed or erratic heartbeat
  •    breathing problems
  •    bowel obstruction
  •    severe itching, hives or swelling
  •    vomiting

Problem with Hydrocodone Addiction

The most difficult about hydrocodone addiction will be the intervention. The drug’s availability made it impossible to stop a user since their perception is that they are following a legitimate doctor’s order. It is important to consider the options for the overall treatment of the patient. RehabNear.Me is dedicated to providing insightful articles and the best addiction treatment centers near you!

About Fort Collins

Fort Collins is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Larimer County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 169,810 at the 2020 census, an increase of 17.94% since 2010. Fort Collins is the principal city of the Fort Collins, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and is a major city of the Front Range Urban Corridor. The city is the fourth most populous city in Colorado. Situated on the Cache La Poudre River along the Colorado Front Range, Fort Collins is located 56 mi (90 km) north of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. Fort Collins is a midsize college town, home to Colorado State University and Front Range Community College's Larimer campus.

About Colorado

Colorado ( KOL-ə-RAD-oh, -⁠RAH-doh, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Colorado borders Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas to the east, Oklahoma to the southeast, New Mexico to the south, Utah to the west, and meets Arizona to the southwest at the Four Corners. Colorado is noted for its landscape of mountains, forests, high plains, mesas, canyons, plateaus, rivers, and desert lands. Colorado is one of the Mountain States and is often considered to be part of the southwestern United States. The high plains of Colorado may be considered a part of the midwestern United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains. Colorado is the eighth most extensive and 21st most populous U.S. state. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population of Colorado at 5,877,610 as of July 1, 2023, a 1.80% increase since the 2020 United States census.The region has been inhabited by Native Americans and their ancestors for at least 13,500 years and possibly much longer. The eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains was a major migration route for early peoples who spread throughout the Americas. In 1848, much of the Nuevo México region was annexed to the United States with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Pike's Peak Gold Rush of 1858–1862 created an influx of settlers. On February 28, 1861, U.S. President James Buchanan signed an act creating the Territory of Colorado, and on August 1, 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant signed Proclamation 230 admitting Colorado to the Union as the 38th state. The Spanish adjective "colorado" means "colored red" or "ruddy". Colorado is nicknamed the "Centennial State" because it became a state one century (and four weeks) after the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence. Denver is the capital, the most populous city, and the center of the Front Range Urban Corridor. Colorado Springs is the second most populous city. Residents of the state are known as Coloradans, although the antiquated "Coloradoan" is occasionally used. Major parts of the economy include government and defense, mining, agriculture, tourism, and increasingly other kinds of manufacturing. With increasing temperatures and decreasing water availability, Colorado's agriculture, forestry, and tourism economies are expected to be heavily affected by climate change.
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