What Kind of Drug Is It?

Hydromorphone is a prescription painkiller made by chemically altering morphine molecules. Morphine is an organic, or carbon-containing compound, extracted from opium, a strongly addictive drug that is made from the opium poppy. (Entries on morphine and opium are also included in this encyclopedia.) Available in pill and injectable form, hydromorphone is about five to eight times stronger than morphine and is sometimes used instead of morphine to regulate pain from injuries, surgery, cancer, and severe migraine headaches. Doctors generally do not prescribe hydromorphone products as a first course for pain relief. Its use is restricted to longer bouts of pain that do not respond to weaker ANALGESICS or over-the-counter (OTC) medicines.

Because hydromorphone is so addictive, doctors who prescribe it are careful to monitor their patients. Physicians also help their patients to gradually stop taking the drug when the medicine is no...