If you are on slow release Oxycodone etc NEVER cut it unless you are looking for a quick exit.
You will stop breathing ..Yes you will die .They do make them very hard to cut however we have put it to the test and my husband was able to cut it.
You will get the full dose very quickly instead of it breaking down slowly over the hours .
Thought I should put that out there after my post on cutting sublingual medications to protect teeth
Shumbah, this is a very frightening post! I have never heard of this. There is no mention in my oxycodone leaflet that came with my script. I’m not sure but I think I have split a 5 mg pill in the past. 😬
hi Merny - your oxy 5 mg tablets might not be slow release. I am at present changing from Temgesic (buprenorphine) to oxycodone. My tablets are Longtec (oxycodone) which is slow release. There are also Shortec which are ordinary. Hope this helps.
5 mg is a very low dose. Slow release are really hard to cut they make them that way deliberately. Cutting them , causes over dose. Certainly would not want to do that with 20 mg which I was on.
Check with your pharmacist if yours are slow release , really important.
They talk about opioid over dose and death and I just wonder how many are from cutting a slow release tablet and not knowing the danger.
I wish they would teach teenagers at school about slow release medications and Panadol and what death by Panadol is like. If they knew how much suffering and how long it takes they would not do it when they break up with a boyfriend.
Young high school girl broke up with her boyfriend so she took a heap of Panadol .Much to her surprise she woke up the next day and felt fine thought well that did not work.
She was really happy went to school and made up with her boyfriend.
36 hours later her parents found her violently ill called an ambulance she suffered very painful death at about day 10.
That is a horribly sad story! I think panadol is like Tylenol in this country, not sure. I’m sure most of the population is not aware of this. Does this apply to any medication that is slow release? I WAS on 20 mg of Oxy but had cut them on occasion. They were 5mg each so maybe that is why it did not affect me. I’m currently taking methadone. I don’t think those are slow release because I do cut those on occasion too😬
I have always wondered how slow release tablets work. I take isosorbide mononitrate extended release 30mg from cutting a 60 mg in half. There is a mark on the tablets to assist cutting and the leaflet says cutting is OK. But how do they ensure the active ingredient is evenly distributed? I once went through a patch where I felt I was getting a much higher dose all in one go. But I guess if this is the case then at times I might be getting the other half which has no active ingredient.
Many slow or extended medications and supplements are relying on a coating to slow digestion and release. The coating may even be in layers - so, one layer is used up then the next layer needs to be digested to access the next release of the medication. Cutting or crushing the tablets opens them up to rapid digestion and release - totally bypassing the extended or slow release feature. The warning on Oxy is very valid!
Some other substances use a chemical means to slow release combining the target medication with an additional slow release product. These can be cut.
EXTENDED RELEASE GABAPENTIN. 
MIRAPEXIN PROLONGED RELEASE
horizont (gabapentin release ) 
Can Ropinirole tablets but cut in half?
Cut off from mirapex 
