Description and Brand Names
Drug information provided by: Merative, Micromedex®
US Brand Name
- Nucynta
- Nucynta ER
Descriptions
Tapentadol oral solution and tablet are used to treat pain severe enough to require opioid treatment and when other pain medicines did not work well enough or cannot be tolerated. The extended-release tablet is used to treat severe pain, including pain caused by nerve damage from diabetes. It should not be used to treat pain that you only have once in a while or "as needed". Tapentadol belongs to the group of medicines called narcotic analgesics (pain medicines) that act on the central nervous system (CNS) to relieve pain.
When tapentadol is used for a long time, it may become habit-forming (causing mental or physical dependence). However, people who have continuing pain should not let the fear of dependence keep them from using narcotics to relieve their pain. Mental dependence (addiction) is not likely to occur when narcotics are used for this purpose. Physical dependence may lead to withdrawal side effects if treatment is stopped suddenly. However, severe withdrawal side effects can usually be prevented by gradually reducing the dose over a period of time before treatment is stopped completely.
This medicine is available only under a restricted distribution program called the Opioid Analgesic REMS (Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy) program.
This product is available in the following dosage forms:
- Tablet, Extended Release
- Tablet
Portions of this document last updated: Aug. 01, 2024
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