OXYCODONE HYDROCHLORIDE TABLETS, USP 5 mg, 15 mg, and 30 mg CII Rx only

The analgesic ingredient, oxycodone, is a semi-synthetic narcotic with multiple actions qualitatively similar to those of morphine; the most prominent of these involves the central nervous system and organs composed of smooth muscle.

Oxycodone, as the hydrochloride salt, is a pure agonist opioid whose principal therapeutic action is analgesia and has been in clinical use since 1917. Like all pure opioid agonists, there is no ceiling effect to analgesia, such as is seen with partial agonists or non-opioid analgesics. Based upon a single-dose, relative-potency study conducted in humans with cancer pain, 10 to 15 mg of oxycodone given intramuscularly produced an analgesic effect similar to 10 mg of morphine given intramuscularly. Both drugs have a 3 to 4 hour duration of action. Oxycodone retains approximately one half of its analgesic activity when administered orally.

The relationship between the plasma level of oxycodone and the analgesic response will depend on the patient's age, state of health, medical condition and extent of previous opioid treatment.

The minimum effective plasma concentration of oxycodone to achieve analgesia will vary widely among patients, especially among patients who have been previously treated with potent agonist opioids. Thus, patients need to be treated with individualized titration of dosage to the desired effect. The minimum effective analgesic concentration of oxycodone for any individual patient may increase with repeated dosing due to an increase in pain and/or development of tolerance.

The activity of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets is primarily due to the parent drug oxycodone. Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets are designed to provide immediate release of oxycodone.

Respiratory depression is the chief hazard from all opioid agonist preparations. Respiratory depression occurs most frequently in elderly or debilitated patients, usually following large initial doses in non-tolerant patients, or when opioids are given in conjunction with other agents that depress respiration.

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets should be used with extreme caution in patients with significant chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or cor pulmonale, and in patients having substantially decreased respiratory reserve, hypoxia, hypercapnia, or pre-existing respiratory depression. In such patients, even usual therapeutic doses of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may decrease respiratory drive to the point of apnea. In these patients alternative non-opioid analgesics should be considered, and opioids should be employed only under careful medical supervision at the lowest effective dose.

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets, like all opioid analgesics, may cause severe hypotension in an individual whose ability to maintain blood pressure has been compromised by a depleted blood volume, or after concurrent administration with drugs such as phenothiazines or other agents which compromise vasomotor tone. Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may produce orthostatic hypotension in ambulatory patients. Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets, like all opioid analgesics, should be administered with caution to patients in circulatory shock, since vasodilatation produced by the drug may further reduce cardiac output and blood pressure.

The respiratory depressant effects of narcotics and their capacity to elevate cerebrospinal fluid pressure may be markedly exaggerated in the presence of head injury, other intracranial lesions or a pre-existing increase in intracranial pressure. Furthermore, narcotics produce adverse reactions which may obscure the clinical course of patients with head injuries.

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets are intended for use in patients who require oral pain therapy with an opioid agonist. As with any opioid analgesic, it is critical to adjust the dosing regimen individually for each patient (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION).

Selection of patients for treatment with oxycodone hydrochloride tablets should be governed by the same principles that apply to the use of other potent opioid analgesics. Opioid analgesics given on a fixed-dosage schedule have a narrow therapeutic index in certain patient populations, especially when combined with other drugs, and should be reserved for cases where the benefits of opioid analgesia outweigh the known risks of respiratory depression, altered mental state, and postural hypotension. Physicians should individualize treatment in every case, using nonopioid analgesics, prn opioids and/or combination products, and chronic opioid therapy with drugs such as oxycodone hydrochloride tablets in a progressive plan of pain management such as outlined by the World Health Organization, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, and the American Pain Society.

Use of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets is associated with increased potential risks and should be used only with caution in the following conditions: acute alcoholism; adrenocortical insufficiency (e.g., Addison's disease); convulsive disorders; CNS depression or coma; delirium tremens; debilitated patients; kyphoscoliosis associated with respiratory depression; myxedema or hypothyroidism; prostatic hypertrophy or urethral stricture; severe impairment of hepatic, pulmonary or renal function; and toxic psychosis.

The administration of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets, like all opioid analgesics, may obscure the diagnosis or clinical course in patients with acute abdominal conditions. Oxycodone may aggravate convulsions in patients with convulsive disorders, and all opioids may induce or aggravate seizures in some clinical settings.

Physical dependence and tolerance are not unusual during chronic opioid therapy. Significant tolerance should not occur in most patients treated with the lowest doses of oxycodone. It should be expected, however, that a fraction of patients will develop some degree of tolerance and require progressively higher dosages of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets to maintain pain control during chronic treatment. The dosage should be selected according to the patient's individual analgesic response and ability to tolerate side effects. Tolerance to the analgesic effects of opioids is usually paralleled by tolerance to side effects except for constipation.

Physical dependence results in withdrawal symptoms in patients who abruptly discontinue the drug or may be precipitated through the administration of drugs with opioid antagonist activity. If oxycodone hydrochloride tablets are abruptly discontinued in a physically dependent patient, an abstinence syndrome may occur (see DRUG ABUSE AND DEPENDENCE). If signs and symptoms of withdrawal occur, patients should be treated by reinstitution of opioid therapy followed by gradual tapered dose reduction of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets combined with symptomatic support (see DOSAGE AND ADMINISTRATION: Cessation of Therapy).

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may cause spasm of the sphincter of Oddi and should be used with caution in patients with biliary tract disease, including acute pancreatitis. Opioids like oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may cause increases in the serum amylase level.

If clinically advisable, patients (or their caregivers) receiving oxycodone hydrochloride tablets should be given the following information by the physician, nurse, pharmacist or caregiver:

1. Patients should be advised to report episodes of breakthrough pain and adverse experiences occurring during therapy. Individualization of dosage is essential to make optimal use of this medication.
2. Patients should be advised not to adjust the dose of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets without consulting the prescribing professional.
3. Patients should be advised that oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may impair mental and/or physical ability required for the performance of potentially hazardous tasks (e.g., driving, operating heavy machinery).
4. Patients should not combine oxycodone hydrochloride tablets with alcohol or other central nervous system depressants (sleep aids, tranquilizers) except by the orders of the prescribing physician, because additive effects may occur.
5. Women of childbearing potential who become, or are planning to become, pregnant should be advised to consult their physician regarding the effects of analgesics and other drug use during pregnancy on themselves and their unborn child.
6. Patients should be advised that oxycodone hydrochloride tablets are a potential drug of abuse. They should protect it from theft, and it should never be given to anyone other than the individual for whom it was prescribed.
7. Patients should be advised that if they have been receiving treatment with oxycodone hydrochloride tablets for more than a few weeks and cessation of therapy is indicated, it may be appropriate to taper the oxycodone hydrochloride tablets dose, rather than abruptly discontinue it, due to the risk of precipitating withdrawal symptoms. Their physician can provide a dose schedule to accomplish a gradual discontinuation of the medication.

Oxycodone is metabolized in part to oxymorphone via the cytochrome p450 isoenzyme CYP2D6. While this pathway may be blocked by a variety of drugs (e.g., certain cardiovascular drugs and antidepressants), such blockade has not yet been shown to be of clinical significance with this agent. However, clinicians should be aware of this possible interaction.

Long-term studies have not been performed in animals to evaluate the carcinogenic potential of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets or oxycodone. The possible effects on male or female fertility have not been studied in animals.

Oxycodone hydrochloride was genotoxic in an in vitro mouse lymphoma assay in the presence of metabolic activation. There was no evidence of genotoxic potential in an in vitro bacterial reverse mutation assay (Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli) or in an assay for chromosomal aberrations (in vivo mouse bone marrow micronucleus assay).

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets are not recommended for use in women during or immediately prior to labor. Occasionally, opioid analgesics may prolong labor through actions which temporarily reduce the strength, duration and frequency of uterine contractions. Neonates, whose mothers received opioid analgesics during labor, should be observed closely for signs of respiratory depression. A specific narcotic antagonist, naloxone, should be available for reversal of narcotic-induced respiratory depression in the neonate.

Oxycodone has been detected in breast milk. Withdrawal symptoms can occur in breast-feeding infants when maternal administration of an opioid analgesic is stopped. Ordinarily, nursing should not be undertaken while a patient is receiving oxycodone hydrochloride tablets since oxycodone may be excreted in milk.

The safety and efficacy of oxycodone in pediatric patients have not been evaluated.

Of the total number of subjects in clinical studies of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets, 20.8% (112/538) were 65 and over, while 7.2% (39/538) were 75 and over. No overall differences in safety or effectiveness were observed between these subjects and younger subjects, and other reported clinical experience has not identified differences in responses between the elderly and younger patients, but greater sensitivity of some older individuals cannot be ruled out.

Since oxycodone is extensively metabolized, its clearance may decrease in hepatic failure patients. Dose initiation in patients with hepatic impairment should follow a conservative approach. Dosages should be adjusted according to the clinical situation.

Published data reported that elimination of oxycodone was impaired in end-stage renal failure. Mean elimination half-life was prolonged in uremic patients due to increased volume of distribution and reduced clearance. Dose initiation should follow a conservative approach. Dosages should be adjusted according to the clinical situation.

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may impair the mental and/or physical abilities required for the performance of potentially hazardous tasks such as driving a car or operating machinery. The patient using this drug should be cautioned accordingly.

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets contain oxycodone, a mu-agonist opioid of the morphine type and is a Schedule II controlled substance. Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets, like other opioids used in analgesia, can be abused and is subject to criminal diversion.

Drug addiction is characterized by compulsive use, use for non-medical purposes, and continued use despite harm or risk of harm. Drug addiction is a treatable disease, utilizing a multi-disciplinary approach, but relapse is common.

“Drug-seeking” behavior is very common in addicts and drug abusers. Drug-seeking tactics include emergency calls or visits near the end of office hours, refusal to undergo appropriate examination, testing or referral, repeated “loss” of prescriptions, tampering with prescriptions and reluctance to provide prior medical records or contact information for other treating physician(s). “Doctor shopping” to obtain additional prescriptions is common among drug abusers and people suffering from untreated addiction.

Abuse and addiction are separate and distinct from physical dependence and tolerance. Physicians should be aware that addiction may not be accompanied by concurrent tolerance and symptoms of physical dependence. In addition, abuse of opioids can occur in the absence of true addiction and is characterized by misuse for nonmedical purposes, often in combination with other psychoactive substances. Careful record-keeping of prescribing information, including quantity, frequency, and renewal requests is strongly advised.

Oxycodone hydrochloride tablets are intended for oral use only. Abuse of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets poses a risk of overdose and death. The risk is increased with concurrent abuse of alcohol and other substances. Parenteral drug abuse is commonly associated with transmission of infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV.

Proper assessment of the patient, proper prescribing practices, periodic re-evaluation of therapy, and proper dispensing and storage are appropriate measures that help to limit abuse of opioid drugs.

Infants born to mothers physically dependent on opioids will also be physically dependent and may exhibit respiratory difficulties and withdrawal symptoms.

Tolerance is the need for increasing doses of opioids to maintain a defined effect such as analgesia (in the absence of disease progression or other external factors). Physical dependence is manifested by withdrawal symptoms after abrupt discontinuation of a drug or upon administration of an antagonist. Physical dependence and tolerance are not unusual during chronic opioid therapy.

The opioid abstinence or withdrawal syndrome is characterized by some or all of the following: restlessness, lacrimation, rhinorrhea, yawning, perspiration, chills, myalgia, and mydriasis. Other symptoms also may develop, including irritability, anxiety, backache, joint pain, weakness, abdominal cramps, insomnia, nausea, anorexia, vomiting, diarrhea, or increased blood pressure, respiratory rate, or heart rate. In general, opioids should not be abruptly discontinued.

Acute overdose with oxycodone hydrochloride tablets can be manifested by respiratory depression, somnolence progressing to stupor or coma, skeletal muscle flaccidity, cold and clammy skin, constricted pupils, bradycardia, hypotension, and death.

To treat oxycodone hydrochloride tablets overdose, primary attention should be given to the re-establishment of a patent airway and institution of assisted or controlled ventilation. Supportive measures (including oxygen and vasopressors) should be employed in the management of circulatory shock and pulmonary edema accompanying overdose as indicated. Cardiac arrest or arrhythmias may require cardiac massage or defibrillation.

The narcotic antagonists, naloxone or nalmefene, are specific antidotes for opioid overdose. Opioid antagonists should not be administered in the absence of clinically significant respiratory or circulatory depression secondary to oxycodone hydrochloride tablet overdose. If needed the appropriate dose of naloxone hydrochloride or nalmefene should be administered simultaneously with efforts at respiratory resuscitation (see package insert for each drug for the details). Since the duration of action of oxycodone may exceed that of the antagonist, the patient should be kept under continued surveillance and repeated doses of the antagonist should be administered as needed to maintain adequate respiration. Gastric emptying may be useful in removing unabsorbed drug.

Opioid antagonists should be administered cautiously to persons who are suspected to be physically dependent on any opioid agonist, including oxycodone (see Opioid-Tolerant Individuals).

When converting patients from fixed ratio opioid/non-opioid drug regimens a decision should be made whether or not to continue the non-opioid analgesic. If a decision is made to discontinue the use of non-opioid analgesic, it may be necessary to titrate the dose of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets in response to the level of analgesia and adverse effects afforded by the dosing regimen. If the non-opioid regimen is continued as a separate single entity agent, the starting dose of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets should be based upon the most recent dose of opioid as a baseline for further titration of oxycodone. Incremental increases should be gauged according to side effects to an acceptable level of analgesia.

If a patient has been receiving opioid-containing medications prior to taking oxycodone hydrochloride tablets, the potency of the prior opioid relative to oxycodone should be factored into the selection of the total daily dose (TDD) of oxycodone.

In converting patients from other opioids to oxycodone hydrochloride tablets close observation and adjustment of dosage based upon the patient's response to oxycodone hydrochloride tablets is imperative. Administration of supplemental analgesia for breakthrough or incident pain and titration of the total daily dose of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets may be necessary, especially in patients who have disease states that are changing rapidly.

Continual re-evaluation of the patient receiving oxycodone hydrochloride tablets is important, with special attention to the maintenance of pain control and the relative incidence of side effects associated with therapy. If the level of pain increases, effort should be made to identify the source of increased pain, while adjusting the dose as described above to decrease the level of pain.

During chronic therapy, especially for non-cancer-related pain (or pain associated with other terminal illnesses), the continued need for the use of opioid analgesics should be re-assessed as appropriate.

When a patient no longer requires therapy with oxycodone hydrochloride tablets or other opioid analgesics for the treatment of their pain, it is important that therapy be gradually discontinued over time to prevent the development of an opioid abstinence syndrome (narcotic withdrawal). In general, therapy can be decreased by 25% to 50% per day with careful monitoring for signs and symptoms of withdrawal (see DRUG ABUSE AND DEPENDENCE section for description of the signs and symptoms of withdrawal). If the patient develops these signs or symptoms, the dose should be raised to the previous level and titrated down more slowly, either by increasing the interval between decreases, decreasing the amount of change in dose, or both. It is not known at what dose of oxycodone hydrochloride tablets that treatment may be discontinued without risk of the opioid abstinence syndrome.