What Are the Side Effects of Oxycodine?

Oxycodine (or oxycodone) is a prescription narcotic analgesic medication. Despite its effectiveness at relieving moderate to severe pain, oxycodone poses a risk for side effects in some patients.

Common Side Effects

• The most common side effects of oxycodine include nausea, constipation, vomiting, headache, itching, insomnia, dizziness, weakness and drowsiness.

Rate of Occurrence

• The most common side effects of oxycodine occur in at least three percent of patients, according to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clinical trials published by the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM).

Drug Interactions

• When taken with other other drugs that suppress your central nervous system, such as muscle relaxants, narcotic pain relievers, anesthetics, sedatives, hypnotics or alcohol, there is an increased risk of side effects from oxycodine. Because of a risk for coma, avoid taking oxycodine within four days of an MAO inhibitor antibiotic, the NLM recommends.

Risks

• Oxycodine poses a risk for respiratory depression, a condition where your brain is unable to properly regulate your breathing. In addition, oxycodine decreases blood pressure levels and could cause circulatory system failure.

Considerations

• Because oxycodone is known to cause fetal abnormalities in laboratory animals, doctors rarely prescribe the drug for use in pregnant women. If you have a history of addiction, kidney or liver problems, head injury, respiratory depression, asthma or paralytic ileus, it may not be safe for you to take oxycodine, the NLM warns.