Paging Dr. House: Vicodin Abuse Is On The Rise

The fictional TV doctor Greg House, while brilliant, spent the first several seasons of his hit FOX show wrestling with Vicodin (Hydrocodone) addiction. House was in pain because of his right leg, but the use of what was intended to be a prescription pain killer quickly got out of hand when he started to forge prescriptions for Vicodin, and even steal it from his patients.

Dr. House isn’t the only one this has happened to. This so-called “White Collar” drug abuse is on the rise, mostly due to the ease of obtaining pills like Hydrocodone, Oxycodone, and Hydromorphone.

A recent study by Quest Diagnostics discovered that about 1.3% of workers test positive for Hydrocodone, and about 1.1% test positive for Oxycodone. That means one in eighty workers are illicitly using Vicodin, and about one in ninety workers are popping Percocet. The only drug that had a higher positive rate was Marijuana. Vicodin abuse has quadrupled in the United States in the past ten years.

I’ve wondered about the “White Collar” aspect of hydrocodone drug abuse, and why it’s on the rise. I have had both of these medications prescribed to me, and I know how well they work. I also know from first-hand experience that the number one side effect of Vicodin is the urge to take another.

• Is drug use on the rise because these are prescription and readily available? Most report their first illicit Vicodin comes from a friend or family member.
• Have we been trained by doctors and pharmaceutical companies that any time something is wrong to reach into the medicine cabinet?
• Stress is a key factor leading to Vicodin abuse.
• Pain relievers that involve hydrocodone—Vicodin—were prescribed 136 million times in 2008 alone.

It’s everywhere. It’s easy to access. It’s no wonder that recreational use of Vicodin is on the rise.