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The first thing I would highly advise to do is see your doctor. To
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My research on the net has revealed statements from the medical
community that make a direct link between the sensitivity you're
describing and opioid use.
In a study by the Johns Hopkins university with regard to opiate
consumption, of 76 seniors, "fifty-seven had increased sensitivity to
touch, eight had increased sensitivity to cold and 14 had increased
sensitivity to heat."
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/press/2002/October/021008.htm
Jose Pereira, MD Assistant Professor, University of Alberta, says one
of the side effects of opioids is hyperalgesia or allodynia:
Editorial Reflections Neurotoxicity of Opioids: Are We Responding
http://www.palliative.org/PC/ClinicalInfo/Editorials/NeurotoxicityOfOpioids.html
"...[Opioid's] adverse effects are primarily neuro-psychiatric in
nature and include myoclonus, grand-mal seizures, hallucinosis and
delirium, hyperalgesia and allodynia. Myoclonus presents as
generalized muscular twitching and if severe enough, can go onto
develop grand-mal seizures. Hyperalgesia and allodynia, in which
normally non painful stimuli become very painful, are one of the more
dramatic toxicities described. Several authors have reported patients
experiencing visual or tactile hallucinations. Cognitive impairment,
delirium and late-onset sedation have also been noted. Most of the
commonly utilized opioids, including morphine, hydromorphone,
oxycodone, and fentanyl, have been implicated..."
Allodynia is exactly what you're describing. Medic8 online medical
dictionary defines it as:
A "condition in which ordinarily nonpainful stimuli evoke pain."
Additional corroboration of this can be seen in these articles:
From the Internet Journal of Pain, Symptom Control and Palliative
Care:
http://www.ispub.com/ostia/index.php?xmlFilePath=journals/ijpsp/vol1n1/opioids.xml
"...Allodynia, myoclonus and seizures are neuroexcitatory side effects
which have been observed in individual patients receiving large doses
of systemic morphine or its structural analogue hydromorphone..."
From Mary Lou Kaney RN, U of Iowa
http://www.nursing.uiowa.edu/sites/adultpain/Narcs/MyosPate.htm
"At times, the patient can experience allodynia, which means that a
stimulus that ordinarily does not cause pain, becomes very painful.
This has been seen as severe pain experienced by mere touch, even the
touch needed to turn or stroke a patient. This phenomenon is not
always seen with high dose opioid therapy, but occurs frequently
enough that it is troublesome to patients, their families and their
medical caregivers."
There is a very high chance, that if you haven't changed anything else
in your body when you started taking opioids, then the opioids or a
combination of them with something else you're taking is the only
logical variable that could be causing this sensitivity.
Of course, the most conclusive determination would be to discontinue
opioid use for a time -- with your doctor's consent -- and if your
sensitivity desists, you'll have an empirical answer. I would discuss
with your doctor the known side effects of the particular brand you're
using. Perhaps a solution would be to change medications you're using
or lower the dose. Your doctor should have a course of action for you
to take.
Search Strategy:
"opioids are"
"opioid-induced" allodynia
opioids allodynia
opioid toxicity
Neurotoxicity of opioids
Additional Link:
Nociception
Rohini Kuner, Universität Heidelberg, Germany
http://encref.springer.de/mp/0002.htm |
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