Doctor prescribed too much Tylenol

[dliver316]

I just had my tonsils taken out this Tuesday and got lots of great advice from so many people on here that I had to ask what you all thought I should do or not do about this:

My MD prescribed Vicodin 1-2 tabs every 3 hrs as needed for pain (that is hydrocodone 5mg/Tylenol 500mg). If I were to take 1 tab every 3 hrs per day that would be 4000mg Tylenol and if I were to take the 2 tabs every 3hrs that would be 8000mg of Tylenol per day! That is double the recommended dose of Tylenol (right now it is 4000mg/day, but they are considering lowering that). Too much tylenol can cause liver failure.
So far the pain had not been so bad b/c I was trying to stay on top of the pain meds and take one every 3 hrs. But b/c I dont want to take so much tylenol I did not take it for about 6 hrs last night and when I woke up I was in excrutiating pain.
I called the doctors office about it yesterday and the girl who called me back, who I dont even think is a nurse, said that this is the recommended dose and b/c I just had surgery I need to take it. I dont know why they cant call me in something with less Tylenol in it. It is not like I want anything stronger, I just want to be able to take my medicine when I am able to without worrying about overdosing on Tylenol.
So I guess what I am going to do is just take 1 tab every 4-5 hours and try to deal with the pain. But what worries me is that there are probably many people out there who would take the 8000mg b/c it was prescribed that way and possibly end up with liver damage.
What if anything do you think I should do? Just let it go?

[Jillianleanne]

Your doctor may have taken into consideration that you would be sleeping/and or not needing them for some of those 3 hr intervals. If you are concerned about getting over medicated then call your doctor again and ask to speak to a nurse or directly to your doctor and voice your concerns and ask about alternative pain medications.

[bigsweetie]

I would ask a pharmacist. Actually, if it were worrisome your pharmacist should've notified you before filling the script.

I'm not well versed on the ins/outs of Tylenol, but I thought that it caused liver damaged when overdosed long term. Maybe your doctor is thinking you won't need it for too long so it'd be o.k.

If you're really concerned, consult more than one pharmacist about it.

I once had a doctor write a script for my daughter when she was a newborn. He wrote it for the pill to be dissolved in FOUR OUNCES of water two times/day. For a newborn that can be dangerous because that would've basically taken away TWO of her feedings/day. The pharmacist didn't even catch it (which really peeved me off). Luckily she's my second child and I knew that giving a newborn that much water/day wasn't a good idea. I let the pharmacist know and she apologized... she hadn't noticed the age of my daughter when looking at the script. I'd hate to think of a new mom who didn't know better.

Good luck!

[angieandaj]

They are now making a Vicodin pill with less acetaminophen because of this problem. You can call your doctor and tell them that you want to change your prescription. If you are really worried, I would tell them how important it is to you. Good luck.

[Dengineer]

I'm guessing they recommended that much because you're only going to be taking it for a few days. You shouldn't take that dosage for 6 months but for 5-7 days the risk of permanent damage is lower. I'm not a doctor or pharmacist but that would be my guess.

[kennys2006]

Right on all of the posts mentioned. I can assure you the doctors know about the acetaminophen in it.

5 mg hydrocodone usually with 500 mg or more acetaminophen is what my drug guide said is available for Vicodin.

But, like another poster has posted the FDA is considering removing drugs that include acetaminophen with the narcotic analgesia because of the likelihood of liver failure.

You are doing everything you have to do. You know that you cannot go over/near 4000mg, so don't do it. :) Good job doing the math before hand, for sure.