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Buprenorphine patches for pain relief

Posted , 3 users are following.

Peterst
Peterst

Hi,

My wife is 55, has chronic back pain and after years of suffering and being prescribed tablet painkillers, Tramadol, Co-Codamol,was put on the lowest doseage of the patch, sure it made her feel giddy for a short while, but once that eased the pain was gone as if by magic, she has been on the patches for about 4 years, we recently moved home and her old GP informed her that whatever medication she was on would need to be honoured by her new GP.

Not so, at her first visit she was informed by the new GP \"Oh we dont give these out\", this GP has done everything in her power to get my wife off these patches, Hospital visits to see consultants, to see if there is an alternative, NO, now she is to go to a pain clinic, to see if there is an alternative, The GP gave my wife 10 patches at her last visit and they will probably be her last, then its back on to useless tablets, lower quality of life, suffering constant pain.

Why and how can they do this?

We live in North Ayrshire and when you talk to other people in the surgery, they find the local GP`s most unhelpfull.

She is a changed woman since she went on the patches and i dread the woman who WILL return when the pain comes back.

Does anyone have similar experiences or can they offer help/advice please

Thanks for reading

peter

0 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • Guest
    Guest

    Posted

    Peter,

    I have just been prescribed thes patches and are much more effective than Tramodol e.t.c.

    You need to either change your Doctor or ask your pain management consultant to prescribe these for your wife once more, as you say her quality of life is affected.

    Regards,

    Paul.

  • Andy
    Andy

    Posted

    I recently started on the patches and I feel so much more alive, feel less drowsy as pain makes me very tired, more than any meds, my wife thinks the patches are great as I have become more normal. I am slowly reducing my use of Co-codamol, maybe increase the patch strength till my pain is for the main part controlled using them.

    I think one of the problems with the doc is that they dont like to prescribe what is basically Morphine, even my own who is a fab doc had to get a letter from the hospital and the chemists asked me to let them know when I order a script so as they can order them in special. In the US the main use of Buprenorphine is to wean junkies of Heroin.

    Doctors seem to prefer prescribing high dose Codeine and paracetamol, which is widespread, than using stronger Morphine type opiates, which their drug bibles advise against.

    Have you tried contacting the pain clinic where the patches were prescribed and ask if they can send a letter to your new doctors confirming your wife's prescription, or see if you can change doctors.

    I hope you manage to sort it out.

    Andy

  • Guest
    Guest

    Posted

    sad i have also suffered from acute back pain since 14 years old. I am now 38. Ive been on tramadol, codiene and other prescription pain killers. The consultant at the hospital said i would need injections through the joints of my spine. I had the injections, nothing. Still pain like before. My doctor started me off on the lowest dose of buprenorphine patches. These made me feel a bit sickly but i overcome this and the pain eased slightly. After a few weeks though the pain came back and i went onto the next dose. I am now on the strongest dosage and feel sick every morning when i get up. I think this as something to do with your body absorbing more of the drug when you are hot(thats why its recommended you dont use heat around them). What i want to say is that i think your body gets used to the dosage and then the pain comes back. What my doctor told me though is how much they cost if not on the nhs. For the middle dose £31.50 has to come out of the doctors budget. Thats why some doctors dont want to prescibe them. It not that they cant. its all about them saving money and not treating patients properly. I have got the go back to my doctors this week to ask to be referred back to my consultant to see what he can do for me now. My doctors told me that an operation would probably work but that the consultant is trying to postpone it as long as he can due to the fact that these operations need repeating after several years and each one after becomes harder to do ans costs money.As you can see its all about money and costs. Ever likely your poor wife cant get her patches. Its all wrong. If the docs themselves were in pain, i have no doubt they would want what makes them better!!!!!
  • Guest
    Guest

    Posted

    I am really so, so sorry to hear that this new G.P. is being really difficult (and I believe he IS - I am also in Scotland, quite near to where you are). I would definately have your wife change her G.P. - my husband says that I am so much like my old self since I started Butrans (I am on 10 mcg), and even my G.P. says that he can see a marked improvement with my ability to cope. If your wife's new G.P. could only see the use of the patches more positively for how they actually IMPROVE people's quality of life!!

    I wish you and your wife all the very best (and wonder also if your wife is seeing the pain team at the New **** - it might be well worth asking for a referral if not) - they are very good at formulating pain programmes, and class the patches as an important 'tool' along with other measures to give a person some quality of life back.

    [color=indigo:4c2554004c][i:4c2554004c][b:4c2554004c][size=9:4c2554004c](Sorry but Patient Admin have removed a Doctor, Consultant and or Hospital name from this posting, as it is the policy of Patient UK not to publish these on this forum.) [/size:4c2554004c][/b:4c2554004c][/i:4c2554004c][/color:4c2554004c]

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