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I have some Oxycodone that I got when I had surgery about a year ago. The prescription was filled on 11/1/11. I didn't use them all but NEED some now due to some heavy duty knee pain (I have torn ACL in both knees).
There is no expiration date on the bottle. Does anyone know how long these are "good' for? Is it dangerous to take them if they're over a year old?
I have some Oxycodone that I got when I had surgery about a year ago. The prescription was filled on 11/1/11. I didn't use them all but NEED some now due to some heavy duty knee pain (I have torn ACL in both knees).
There is no expiration date on the bottle. Does anyone know how long these are "good' for? Is it dangerous to take them if they're over a year old?
I would say yes,they are fine. The shelf life of most drugs is quite long.
You can always call any pharmacy and ask.
Sorry, I can't find the link, but there was a report done on this topic for the US Military because they stockpile large amounts of drugs.
They tested the drugs after 20 years of storage and found to their surprise that the strength of almost all of the drugs was approximately 90%.
They concluded that properly storing them in a cool, dry environment kept degradation to a minimum, and that the drugs would be safe and effective to administer.
Sorry, I can't find the link, but there was a report done on this topic for the US Military because they stockpile large amounts of drugs.
They tested the drugs after 20 years of storage and found to their surprise that the strength of almost all of the drugs was approximately 90%.
They concluded that properly storing them in a cool, dry environment kept degradation to a minimum, and that the drugs would be safe and effective to administer.
Here's the link, from Harvard. Study said 15 years, oops, but still important.
Best-by dates for ALL products reflect the MINIMUM safe time they can be used. They don't suddenly drop to zero or become toxic at midnight on the best-by date.
A drug is guaranteed to have full effectiveness at least up to the best-by date. It's effectiveness after depends, partly, on storage. It it is stored in the dark within the recommended temperature range, it will remain effective much longer than the best-by date.
It is highly unlikely that any drug will become dangerous to use after a prolonged period of time. The only danger would be from leaving a condition inadequately treated, owing to decline effectiveness of the drug.
Just a note - because oxycodone is a controlled substance, if you work for any kind of company that drug testing, you will want to have a CURRENT Rx for that drug.
Otherwise, if you were drug-tested and found to have Oxy in your system with no current Rx ... you would basically be accused of illegal drug use/drug abuse.
For that reason, effectiveness of the product aside (yes, at 1 year old it is likely to still be quite effective), I would discard any controlled substances after the event they were prescribed for had concluded, then go to the doctor if a new Rx is needed for a new event.
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but still important.
