The information below about E. coli pain treatment is not medical advice. We are a law firm that represents E. coli victims throughout the United States. We are publishing this information as a public service. Contact us about compensation for pain and suffering and other damages.
Severe abdominal pain is a frequent symptom of E. coli O157:H7 infections. However, one must be very careful in use of pain relievers because they have been found to make the symptoms last longer and be more severe. The reason for this is that typical medications used with abdominal pain relax the muscles of the digestive tract. While this may relieve pain in E. coli O157:H7 infections, it prevents the bacteria from being evacuated from the digestive tract.
The digestive system has a regular series of muscle contractions called the peristaltic action which helps to move food through the body. But when these contractions do not occur or are much weaker, such as when pain medications are used, food and other materials move much more slowly through the body. This gives E. coli more time to infect and establish a strong hold.
The specific drugs that reduce this peristaltic action fall under three categories: antimotility drugs, anticholinergic agents, and opioid narcotics.
Common antimotility agents include Loperamide (Imodium®) and Dephnoxylate (Lomotil®).
Anticholinergic agents include Dicyclomine (Bentyl®), Donnatal, Flavoxate (Urispas®), Glycopyrrolate (Robinul®), Hyoscyamine (Levsin®), Oxybutynin (Ditropan®), Propantheline (Pro-Banthine®) and Tolterodine (Detrol®).
Opioid narcotics include codeine, Fentanyl (Duragesic®), Hydrocodone, Hydromorphone (Dilaudid), Meperidine (Demerol®), Methadone (Dolophine®), Morphine (MS Contin® and others) and Oxycodone (OxyContin®).
Sources:
1. Tarr PI, Neill MA. 2001. Esherichia coli O157:H7. Gastroenterol Clin North Am. 30:3: 735-751.
2. University of Chicago. 2007. Treatment and Therapy-Pain Medication. Jack Miller Center for Peripheral Neuropathy. Online at http://millercenter.uchicago.edu/learnaboutpn/treatment/pain_med/narcotics.shtml
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