Oxycodone is a narcotic medicine similar to Morphine. Oxycodone helps dull the intensity of pain by increasing the bodies’ pain tolerance or eliminating the pain completely. Oxycodone is usually prescribed to people who require constant pain relief for their everyday lives. Oxycodone is a semi-synthetic opioid, which means it is made in a lab from natural opiates. Oxycodone was first made in 1916 from thebaine, an opioid alkaloid, by two German scientists named, Freund and Speyer. The drug did not become popular until the pill was cut with aspirin and named Percodan in the early 50s. In 1970 Percodan was listed as a Schedule II drug, meaning it was often abused, in the Federal Controlled Substances Act. Soon after, another oxycodone product, Percocet was placed on the market. In an attempt to avoid more abuse and robberies, Percocet was prescribed much more carefully. However, the effectiveness made the drug become highly desirable as a painkiller. In 1996, the pure version of oxycodone was released onto the market as OxyContin. Many lawsuits have been made against the company because of the numerous deaths caused from people abusing their drug and overdosing.
B.) Making Oxycodone Oxycodone is prepared by altering thebaine, an organic chemical found in the opium poppy and Persian poppy. Opium is a narcotic containing codeine, …show more content…
Oxycodone and aspirin include Percodan and Roxicet. Oxycodone and acetaminophen make Percocet and Oxycet. Oxycodone and its various products are available only by prescription from a doctor and their prescriptions are not refillable. Doctors are very careful about prescribing Oxycodone extended-release tablets only to people who have severe pain 24/7 and cannot use other pain relievers. OxyContin, a very commonly used product of oxycodone, can be quite expensive. A prescribed 40mg pill costs about 4 dollars and the street value is about 25 to 40