Newarcher Posted December 10, 2010 Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 Hey all, Thought you guys could learn from my situation...I have learned a lot over the past week. I had hernia surgery last Friday..no big deal, just an umbilical hernia. I was prescribed Lortab which includes, as a component, tylenol (acetomenophine--is that spelled right? ). The maximum dose for the 7.5 / 500 mg lortabs is 1 pill every four to six hours. Somehow, my Dr., surgery center, and pharmacy all screwed up and wrote the prescription for 1-2 pills every four hours. For those counting, that would have me taking (at the max dose) up to 50% more than the maximum daily dose. That would put the dose into the danger for immediate liver damage and possibly death if someone were sick or an alcoholic. Normally, there is safety in dosages and wiggle room so that if you accidentally take too much (within reason) you will be okay. However, with Tylenol that isn't the case. The difference between the maximum daily dose and the dose that can cause acute liver damage and possibly death is very very small. Add the fact that Tylenol is in so many different medications, it is very easy to take too much on accident by taking Tylenol with some other over the counter cold medications. I didn't suffer any of the symptoms of acute liver failure although it remains to be seen how much, if any liver damage has been done. I believe in my case any liver damage done will be reversible over time but for some that aren't healthy you can actually die from this mess. I am getting tylenol out of my home. I had no idea how dangerous this stuff is. Also, always read and double check all medications given and their dosages---don't assume that just because the doctor prescribed it, you can take it as written. Mistakes happen. New Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin R10 man Posted December 10, 2010 Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 Yup people make mistakes....just be glad they worked on the right spot..if your not missing anything your not supposed to be,:crutch: your lucky.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newarcher Posted December 10, 2010 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 Ha, yeah that was the first thing I made sure was still there! It is shocking just how dangerous Tylenol is (people often think it can be taken like aspirin). What's even more is that the line between normal dose and deadly does is shockingly thin! New Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gzilla45 Posted December 10, 2010 Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 I got into some trouble with tylenol back in high school. During two-a-days for football I was popping 4 of them every few hours and at 16 years old had no idea that it was hurting me. Fortunately I had my physical the following week and when they did the blood test, alarms went off with the doctors. Had I not had my physical I would have continued taking that many and probably would have done major damage. I had to have tests done for quite a while to make sure no permanent damage happened. It's pretty scary when you think about it and I was seriously naive to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newarcher Posted December 10, 2010 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 I got into some trouble with tylenol back in high school. During two-a-days for football I was popping 4 of them every few hours and at 16 years old had no idea that it was hurting me. Fortunately I had my physical the following week and when they did the blood test, alarms went off with the doctors. Had I not had my physical I would have continued taking that many and probably would have done major damage. I had to have tests done for quite a while to make sure no permanent damage happened. It's pretty scary when you think about it and I was seriously naive to it. That's it exactly...people don't know how dangerous it is. To them, it is like taking aspirin. After you stopped taking them, did your test results return back to normal? Any lasting problems? I think I will probably be fine but its unsettling not knowing what you have done to yourself. My wife is the one who gave me the meds and she saw a vague warning on the bottle but it wasn't clear....this should be a warning very explicitly stated not to take more than X pills in a 24 hour period. New Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gzilla45 Posted December 10, 2010 Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 It happened 15 years ago but from what I remember I stopped taking them completely and had to get a blood test done for a few weeks to make sure things returned to normal and they did. But it sure was scary meeting with the doctor until they figured out what caused it. I got a stern lecture from him and it is something I'll take with me the rest of my life. Read the label!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Kat Posted December 10, 2010 Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 If the pharmacy or doctor made a mistake that could have cost you your life, I would make certain they paid for it. Mistakes happen, but ones that can harm a person as seriously as liver failure needs consequences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebeilgard Posted December 10, 2010 Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 If the pharmacy or doctor made a mistake that could have cost you your life, I would make certain they paid for it. Mistakes happen, but ones that can harm a person as seriously as liver failure needs consequences. i'd at least keep a record of what happened on file, in case problems arise 20 years from now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newarcher Posted December 10, 2010 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2010 i'd at least keep a record of what happened on file, in case problems arise 20 years from now. I'm going to write letters to the hospital, doctor (although he was flippant that I was even worried about it--said he prescribes that level all the time), and pharmacy. I'm not lawsuit crazy but if I had needed a liver transplant or had to go on dialysis for a year because of it, then we would need an attorney. I made detailed notes of what I took, I have the original prescription sheet from the hospital showing 4degrees (which indicates every four hours), and I have the bottle showing the instructions. I just got back from giving blood and the doc thinks I will be okay since the kidneys are functioning again well and I am not showing signs of jaundice. But I gave blood so that they could check my liver and kidney enzymes for signs of damage. I am in some moderate pain from the stupid belt pushing on the incision but there is simply no way I am taking anything with tylenol in it. New Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebohio Posted December 11, 2010 Report Share Posted December 11, 2010 good info to know. im sure ive double dosed many times. wont be doing that anymore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elkoholic Posted December 12, 2010 Report Share Posted December 12, 2010 As a pharmacist let me put in my two cents worth. First of all, taking one to two tablets of Lortab (any strength) every four to six hours post-op for acute pain is a standard dosing regiment. There was no mistake made. Secondly, you are way over stating the risks of acetaminophen. While it is true that too much acetaminophen can cause liver damage, it is very rare (yes, it could happen) that short term, high dose acetaminophen will cause any damage. As with any medicine there is a "risk to benefit" consideration. Current FDA recommendations are for a max of 3200 mg of acetaminophen daily (it used to be 4000 mg) and they are looking at 2600 mg. With very few exceptions, liver damage from acetaminophen is related more to long term excess. A single toxic dose would be in the range of 7500 mg to 10,000 mg and even if you had taken the maximum dose prescibed (around the clock) you would have been at 6000 mg over that period. The real problem would be if you were taking other medications (over the counter) that also contain acetaminophen or if you were drinking alcohol at the same time, which is also metabolized via the hepatic cytochrome P450 pathway (any medications metabolized via this pathway increases risks). Only 5% - 8% of acetaminophen is processed through this pathway, but the resulting metabolite is very toxic and it is usually bound by glutathione and excreted in the urine. Under normal circumstances, therapeutic doses of acetaminophen do not cause hepatic injury. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted December 12, 2010 Report Share Posted December 12, 2010 I have been suffering from the worst headaches I have ever had in my life, for around 6 weeks now. I've been a little reluctant to take Tylenol along with all the other meds I'm on, but have popped a few. They didn't help much anyways. The headaches are finally subsiding, but still get the odd one. They remind me of when I had encephalitis at age 13. They came with this head-cold I've had for the past 6 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turkeygirl Posted December 13, 2010 Report Share Posted December 13, 2010 This is why on certain medication boxes it says "Don't take if you've taken acetominophen or a product containing acetominophen." Completely agree with elkoholic. Ibuprofen I think is worse for you then Tylenol if taken too much and too long The Dr. though should have wrote the order as 1 Lortab....writing it as 1-2 is actually an incorrect order...it has to be specific. Most doses of Tylenol are your standard 325mg/tab or 500mg/tab extra strength. I would not write off Tylenol as bad...I can see your concern, but you are probably more then likely fine:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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