Overdose of the common household drug acetaminophen leads to more than 78,000 emergency department (ED) visits a year, and the majority of the overdoses are intentional, according to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
It's a big problem and the study found three main causes among ED patients.
"About 70 percent are for self-harm attempts, and 13 percent to 14 percent are kids getting into products," said lead study author Daniel Budnitz, M.D. "The other 16 percent are the adolescents and adults that generally fall into two groups: the younger adults that are misusing over-the-counter products because they are trying to get better pain control and don't understand the risks, and the older adults that are making some errors using the opioid combination products."
Consumers take acetaminophen - the active ingredient in Tylenol - to reduce pain or fever, as a single drug in tablets, capsules or liquid. Acetaminophen combines with other drugs in a variety of over-the-counter cold, flu and sinus medicines including Theraflu, Triaminic and Sudafed. Acetaminophen also appears in combination with an opioid - a narcotic- in prescription medicines like Vicodin (with hydrocodone) or in Percocet (with oxycodone).
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