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Overview
Ultram is a new type of pain reliever. Although it appears to work in part by blocking opioid recepters, it is not considered a narcotic.
It is prescribed for moderate to moderately severe pain, and is approximately as potent as Darvocet.
Side Effects and Interactions
Ultram may cause side effects such as dizziness, nausea, constipation, headache, drowsiness, vomiting and itching.
Agitation and anxiety, weakness or fatigue, sweating, indigestion, dry mouth or diarrhea may also occur.
It is important to recognize that Ultram may affect a person's coordination or impair their judgment, so that driving or operating machinery would be hazardous.
Report any symptoms or suspected side effects to your physician promptly.
Ultram is less effective when taken in conjunction with the anticonvulsant Tegretol, and a larger dose may be needed.
MAO inhibitor drugs, on the other hand (Eldepryl, Nardil, Parnate) appear to increase Ultram levels and may, therefore, increase the risk of seizures.
Check with your doctor and pharmacist to make sure this medicine is safe in combination with any other drugs you take.
Special Precautions
Large doses of Ultram carry a risk of seizures.
People with kidney disease or cirrhosis may need a lower dose of Ultram, as may the elderly.
Taking the Medicine
Ultram may be taken with or without meals, every four to six hours.
Maximum dose is 400 mg daily, except in those over 75 years, who should be limited to 300 mg per day or less.
Did this drug work? Average rating: 4.5/5 (12 votes)
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My doctor prescribed ultram for a chronic back pain that I was experiencing about 6-7 years ago. It was the only thing that kept me going for several months. We never determined the origin of the back pain even after nearly every medical test available. It finally went away after about ten months. I was concerned about any addictive properties in the ultram but when the pain finally subsided, I was able to stop taking the drug quickly.
I been taking ultram for a while now for lower back pain and i must say this drug is very addictive and i am hopefully looking into the future without it. one of the biggest precautions is that the aggravation and anxiety that comes with it so be very careful.....
I take Tegretol, have a serious seizure disorder, and also take Tramadol as needed for pain relief for prolapsed disks that aren't surgically repairable. At times, I have constant pain for up to ten days, but I've always been able to immediately stop taking Tramadol without any noticeable adverse feeling or effect when the pain subsides. We are all different and we react differently to medications, but I wouldn't rule out Tramadol for pain relief.
My doctor (and the orthopedist to whom I was referred for severe hip pain) prescribed Tramadol for recurring pain. After reading your entry about the drug, I now understand why I was nauseated, dizzy, had hot flashes, and many of the other side effects this supposedly safe drug causes.
I decided to take all my prescriptions (which included a variety of arthritis drugs -- e.g., Naproxen sodium, Arthrotek and Meloxicam-- they had been trying out on me in succession, all of which had very little effect on my arthritis and upset my stomach even further) back to the pharmacy drive-through window and ask the pharmacist to incinerate them with the rest of the medical waste.
I then went through what I can only describe as "withdrawal" for about 48 hours (which made me more sympathetic to celebrities who become dependent on the big-time painkillers) and when it was over it felt like coming out from under a cloud.
All this, from a patient like me who is conservative and careful in her use of medications. However, the inflammation is still a big issue, so I'm trying a variety of non-drug alternatives like acupuncture, the grape juice/pectin drink, and Chinese herbs. Haven't tried the gin-soaked raisins yet!
In the future, I will try my darndest to eschew pharmaceuticals: the "health" care industry is hardly that, but rather an unending flow of drugs thrown at patients, with the effect all too often of only making them sicker. Certainly that has been my experience.
Yes, if I'm hit by a car, I'll go to the E.R. and be very grateful for a surgeon... but aside from conditions requiring machines, or illnesses like Bubonic Plague, I'm planning NOT to be sucked into the grinder of conventional medicine again.
Now, let's see if those gin-soaked yellow raisins really work! :-)
I took tramadol and it really impaired my judgment. I felt dopey and sleepy.
At 75 I have severe arthritis in my body and have taken tramadol for about ten years with great results. Some days I'm way stiffer than others, but the dose of 6 pills a
day sure allows me to keep the connections with folks that mean a lot to me, without
most of the pain. It's worth looking into if you want to keep functioning and reduce pain.
My sis has suffered constant unrelenting severe pain in shoulders & knees for over a year now, can't sleep, can no longer drive, can hardly walk or use hands to do anything. She was on zocor, wishes she had ignored the PA's ignorant insistence that she MUST stay on that drug. She has been off it for 7 months now, & pain has not eased. The doc has been giving her things like arthritis tylenol, naprosen, etc. which have not touched this crippling pain.
He has just called in tramadol, & recommended a rheumatologist, who says they can't see her for at least 2 months to try to diagnose her & do something about this pain. Her hands & feet are swollen. Does this sound like rhabdomyolysis from zocor to you? It's not her joints (bones), it's muscles & tendons that are weakened & damaged here.
We understand this side effect is usually temporary, & goes away when zocor is discontinued. Not so, for her. Do you know of anything to ease her suffering, or to correct the underlying cause & help heal these damaged tissues? This was an active, perfectly healthy, socially delightful female in her 60's, & all of us have stood by in horror.
She is on no other prescription drug, just this tramadol, which will start today. Would things like MSM be helpful?
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE: IT IS POSSIBLE THAT MSM MIGHT HELP.
I am a 60-yr-old male who has worked fairly dangerous manual labor most of my life. I have so many injuries that I am in constant pain, if I don't take about 50 mg of Tramadol twice a day. I have always had some other odd pains with stiffness, disorientation, extreme fatigue, and a host of other unpleasant symptoms.
Tried most every med for the past 26 years, with no success, except that Naproxen helped for a few weeks before losing its effectiveness. I should mention here that I have never liked being dependent upon meds to function, but have to use levothyroxine, as well.
Have used Tramadol for about 6 years - before then, I lost several jobs because of the nightmarish restlessness and pain that prevented getting anything but fleeting, fatigue-induced sleep. I have tried to stop (and even reduce the dose) of Tramadol - I suffer way too much and would rather be dead than to return to the ugly symptoms without the Tramadol.
I keep hoping something else will come available to do the same as the T. I have used every natural remedy and treatment that you could name, as far as I know. When Ephedra capsules were legally obtainable - I used about a quarter capsule twice to 3 times a day to keep moving. I finally realized one day, that the increased energy (metabolic rate?) actually made my muscle and joint pain and stiffness almost disappear! Ephedra sinica stems are illegal now, but even so - I think that it could present a danger in the long run, as it seems to "wear out" the heart and other organs after a while.
I am just presenting my scenario, so that others may find that they have similar results, and perhaps someone will link cases to some common cause and remedy.
I take 50 mg of tramadol daily for help in my neuropathic (non-diabetic) pain in my feet. In combination with cymbalta and lyrica, I find much more relief. I ignored one neurologist's claim that it would be addictive. The pain relief is so much better that I really don't care about addiction at this point in my life. My own doc prescribes it so I am not worried. It is quality of life that is so important.
I've been prescribed Tramadol for nerve pain for the last 3 1/2 years. I'm trying to switch to herbal pain relievers and reducing the Tramadol. I can't seem to do it. I get very fatigued, disoriented and depressed. Almost a suicidal depression. I was told by it was not narcotic, but it is acting like one. I feel trapped into taking it.
And I got the nerve pain damage from a cortisone shot in my lumbar. Something that I was told would not hurt me but did. I was on no medication at that point.