Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 38

THE TRUTH BY SHELLEY FLANNERY

Painkillers do a
lot of good and
a lot of harm.

THE TRUTH ABOUT

OPIOIDS

Do these powerful painkillers have a place
in modern medicine?

38

WI NT ER 2017

Opioid analgesics are
recommended for treating
chronic pain.
FALSE. Opioid analgesics don't
cure pain; they instead increase a person's pain threshold and reduce the
perception of that pain. They are highly
effective at treating acute pain, which
is temporary pain resulting from an
injury or surgery. They are not recommended for chronic pain that persists
well after a wound has healed or has
no identifiable cause, as opioid use
comes with a high risk of tolerance
(needing to take more to get the
same results).

PHOTO BY GETTY/ TS PHOTOGRAPHY

When your doctor writes you a prescription, you
expect to find relief, not a new set of problems. But
an increasing number of Americans are becoming
addicted to opioid analgesics, often called painkillers.
Prescription opioid use has skyrocketed over the past two
decades, and overdoses have followed suit. Between 1999 and
2015, prescription opioid overdoses quadrupled, leaving more
than 183,000 Americans dead. What can be done to curb the
epidemic? It starts with awareness.

TRUE OR FALSE:



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center

Contents
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - Cover1
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - Cover2
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - Contents
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 2
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 3
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 4
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 5
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 6
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 7
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 8
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 9
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 10
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 11
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 12
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 13
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 14
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 15
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 16
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 17
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 18
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 19
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 20
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 21
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 22
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 23
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 24
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 25
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 26
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 27
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 28
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 29
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 30
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 31
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 32
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 33
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 34
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 35
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 36
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 37
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 38
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 39
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 40
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 41
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 42
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 43
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 44
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 45
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 46
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 47
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 48
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 49
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 50
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 51
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 52
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 53
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 54
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 55
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - 56
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - Cover3
Vim & Vigor - Winter 2017 - Gwinnett Medical Center - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2020fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2020summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2020spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2019winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2019fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2019summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2019spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2018winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2018fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2018summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2018spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2017winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2017fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2017summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2017spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2016winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2016fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/manifest/vimvigor_2016summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2016spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2015winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2015fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2015summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2015spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2014winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2014fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2014summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2014spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2013winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2013fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2013summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2013spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2012winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2012fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2012summer-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2012spring-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2011winter-gmc
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/mcmurry/vimvigor_2011fall-gmc
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com