AboutDr. Ravindra Bhaskar Ghooi Expertise I can provide information on drugs and medicines, their actions, uses, interactions and adverse effects. To avoid confusion, generic names of
medicines may please be provided. I am a pharmacologist, having worked
on animal and human pharmacology, and presently I am the Dean of Bilcare Research Academy, where we teach courses on clinical research. We dont work on saturdays and sundays, hence questions reachng me on these days will be replied on Monday, please bear with me.
Question Hello, I have been suffering with multiple herniated discs in my neck and back. I have undergone surgery in my neck and will be undergoing the same in my lower back this summer. I have been on oxycodone for almost 2 years. I have been taking them every day. Recently I have undergone 3 drug tests, and all three of them have shown that I have acetaminophen in my system but not oxycodone. How can this be? I am so confused and I don't understand how this could be possible. Thank you. Mindy
Answer Hi Mindy,
Most of the complaints I receive are from people who test positive for oxycodone though they have not taken it. Your problem is ecactly opposite. The reasons become clear enough:
1. The testing systems are just bad. They have high false positive and false negative.
2. The timing of the test matches with high levels of acetaminophen but not of oxycodoe.
In any case you should not worry. So long as the medicine is helping you, how does it matter whether it shows up or not?
Ravi Ghooi
