Unfortunately, many of the medications that are prescribed for pain management can cause further damage to the body and become addictive if misused. Popular medications like oxycodone, hydrocodone, oxymorphone, and more can, in turn, cause a user dependence and eventual tolerance to the drug — meaning chronic pain is still present. A recent review study has found the following:

Pain medicines gabapentin and pregabalin may cause dizziness or difficulty walking, but may have some benefit for neck and back nerve pain (such as sciatica) in older adults. They should be used in lower doses with smaller dose adjustments.

Some muscle relaxants (carisoprodol, chlorzoxazone, cyclobenzaprine, metaxalone, methocarbamol, and orphenadrine) should be avoided in older adults due to risk for sedation and falls. Others (tizanidine, baclofen, dantrolene) may be helpful for neck and back pain, with the most evidence for tizanidine and baclofen. These should be used in reduced doses, avoiding tizanidine with liver disease and reducing baclofen dosing with kidney disease.

Tramadol may be tolerated in older adults, but has risk for sedation, upset stomach, and constipation. It may be used in lower doses after alternative medications have failed and works well with co-administered acetaminophen. Opioids are avoided due to their side effects and mortality risk, but low dose opioid therapy may be helpful for severe refractory pain with close monitoring of patients clinically.

Your chiropractor should be the go-to option if you suffer from back pain and wish to avoid the risks attendant to back pain medications.

Presented as a service to the community by: Union County Chiropractic Clinic, 110 Skyline Drive, Maynardville, TN (865) 992-7000 www.unioncountychiropractic.com