Oxycodone sublingual
| Oxycodone sublingual | |
| What is it? | Opioid analgesic |
| Mechanism of action | Mu opioid agonist |
| Starting dose | 1.25–2.5 mg given as drops, maximum 1 hourly |
| Time to effect | Uncertain (20–30 min with oral route)17 |
| Formulation | OxyNorm Concentrate 10 mg/mL oral solution |
| Indication | Pain, breathlessness |
| Common adverse effects | ‘Anxiety; bronchospasm; depression; diarrhoea; dyspnoea; gastrointestinal discomfort; hiccups; mood altered; tremor’16 |
| Contraindications | ‘Acute abdomen; chronic constipation; cor pulmonale; delayed gastric emptying’16 |
| Caution | See Direct.gov.uk for Drug Driving advice |
| Licencing | ‘Off label’ route of licensed oral solution |
| Benefits | A transmucosal alternative to oral or subcutaneous morphine |
| Risks | Unpredictability of bioavailability when sublingual or buccal route used, likely lower than oral due to solution not being lipophilic |
| Cost | £46.63 for 120 mL × 10 mg/mL oral solution |