Co-Codamol Advice

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Taking Paracetamol and or co-codamol for pain relief

Each co-codamol tablet contains paracetamol (500mg) and a codeine (doses of 8,15 or 30mg)

You can buy co-codamol 8/500 at the pharmacy

Co-codamol 30/500 is usually prescribed as Zapain.

You can vary the strength of the pain killer you are taking for instance you may wish to take paracetamol through the day but a stronger co-codamol at night to avoid daytime drowsiness.

You should be aware that co-codamol may cause drowsiness that affects your driving and may invalidate your insurance in the case of an accident.

The correct dose is either:

• 2 paracetamol tablets
• OR  2 co-codamol 8/500 (total of 16mg codeine)
• OR 1 paracetamol and 1 co-codamol 30/500 (total of 30mg codeine)
• OR 2 co-codamol 30/500 (total of 60mg codeine)

EVERY 4-6 hours. It is best to take as close to 6 hourly as possible to ensure that you have pain relief throughout the whole 24 hr.

Never Take More Than 8 tablets in total over a 24 hour period.